


Agnate

by PastelPens



Category: Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood & Manga
Genre: F/M, Friendship/Love, Muteness, Original Character(s), Slow Romance, Strong Female Characters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-18
Updated: 2018-01-18
Packaged: 2019-03-06 13:53:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 25,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13412670
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PastelPens/pseuds/PastelPens
Summary: "She was the perfect variable for the chase: intelligent, kind, and not of their world." Cliona was saved by Truth, and as payment agreed to join the Elric Brothers in their journey for the Philosopher Stone. With a faulty memory, and no voice, can she survive the Gate's game?





	1. White Light

Cliona leaned over her textbook, her eyes raking over the words that stood stark against the white paper. A blue pen was in her right hand, a highlighter in the left as she wrote down key notes into her copy. Soft music played from the speaker on her desk, helping to keep her awake. There was a physics exam in the morning worth half her grade and she would be dammed if she got a bad grade. Her notebook had three dividers: green, orange, and purple. She had been advised not to take all science electives but that was before they realised the talent she had for them.

Cliona stuck the pen between her teeth, nibbling on the end in frustration as she reread a sentence for the sixth time. She was stuck on the method behind the Doppler Effect and how she could relate it to the example given in the book. Tapping on the desk, she gazed back at the yellow streaks on her page that indicated key words. Sighing, she flung the pen onto the floor and stood up.

There wasn’t any point dwelling on it, she thought, opening the study door and slipping into the dimly lit corridor. They were currently in the middle of another mass power failure, having had several in the past two weeks. Usually they only lasted two hours but tonight was seemingly an exception as it had long passed four hours since the electricity had gone out. Cliona’s slippers slapped the tiled floor as she turned into the kitchen. Lit candles dotted the pale-yellow area, casting threatening shadows against the walls. Needing water, Cliona got a bottle from the cupboard and shuffled back to the study.

Flopping back into the desk chair, she took a gulp of the warm water and went to pick up her pen. Frowning, she realised it wasn’t were she’d thrown it. Getting onto her knees, Cliona searched underneath the desk blindly. She was positive she had left it next to the chair on the floor. She made a move to get up, but managed to hit her head on the underside of the desk. Swearing, she clambered back into her chair. Cliona reached to grab another pen from the drawer when she spotted it lying on her open notebook. It was capped and leaking furiously onto the white page. A crack ran through the middle of the body, she noted.

The temperature dropped as Cliona realised something was written on the opened page. Something she hadn’t done. It was a circle, decorated with random art. It reminded her of one of the transmutation circles from an anime she used to watch. She could have passed it off as her family trying to mock her for the slight obsession she had, but the fact was she was home alone. Her parents had gone out to a concert, and her brother had taken it as a chance to visit his girlfriend for the night. Something crashed to the ground in the hallway, followed by a pair of slow footsteps that were heading for the study. Fear mobilised her body as she locked the door, slipping the key shakily down her bra. She went back to the desk, focused on opening the window when the candles in the room blew out, leaving her in the dark as someone started knocking on the door. Shakily, Cliona drew her hand back before placing it instinctively onto the desk. Her palm landed in something wet and she knew without much thinking her hand would be covered in blue ink.

 All at once, the lights turned on behind her. Cliona kept her eyes glued on the notebook as warmth spread up her arm. She knew something was wrong. The lighting in her house had always kept to a more yellow tone as her parents had found it more comforting.

This light was pure white.

* * *

 

“I hate deserts,” Ed complained, “There’s nothing but sand!” He flung himself forward onto the ground, the heat from the sun absorbing into his dark clothes, “At least if there was grass, I could turn it into bread or something!” He lay there unmoving, before he realised the lack of response to his moaning.  He moved so he was leaning on his arms and legs, looking side to side as he searched for a certain suit of armour.

“Hey, Al! Where’d you go? _Al?”_

“Down here!” A metal arm shot through the sand, latching itself onto Ed’s shin which made him squeal, “I sunk again.”

“Reason number two I hate the desert.” He spoke, glaring behind him.

Alphonse was successfully dug out of the sand by his older brother in roughly ten minutes filled with curses courtesy of Ed. The armour stood upright, glancing down at the state alchemist who was bent over as he tried to get back his breath.

“I just don’t understand how you keep falling in!”

“I get full!”

“Full of what!?” Ed yelled, kicking Al’s chest piece which opened to reveal a waterfall of sand that effectively buried his brother. Snickers escaped the youngest Elric, who sidestepped away from the buried Ed. Alphonse only made it a couple of steps before the blond exploded out of the sand pile.

“Get back here!”

“What are you gonna do?”

“Nothing!”

“Then why are you chasing me?”

“Stop and you’ll find out!”

“I promise I won’t get buried again!”

“Not unless it’s by me!”

Alphonse was about to rush back a reply when he spotted something a few feet away. It contrasted with tan sand, reflecting the light as it caught on something metal. It looked half buried already, judging by the lump in the otherwise smooth sand there.

“Brother, look!”

Ed stopped at the tone in his brother’s voice, looking over at where the suit of armour was pointing. Raising a hand, he blocked out some of the glare from the sun and spotted the mysterious lump. “What d’you think it is?”

“I’m not sure, should we go check?”

In response, Ed launched off towards it, his feet sinking an inch into the sand as he ran. The closer he got, the faster he ran as he started to make out what exactly it was, “Al! It’s a person!”

“What!?”

Reaching the half-covered body, he could see the pale and freckled arm that was sticking out and the metal bracelet that had initially caught their attention. Hearing his brother’s voice getting closer, Ed started digging and was soon joined by Al. They realised soon that simply moving the sand wasn’t going to work. Ed clasped the hand with his automail one and pulled, feeling a wave of relief as the dead weight started to shift. With a final burst of strength, he fell backwards, dragging the body with him as it toppled on top of him.

“Brother!”

Opening his eyes that had closed in anticipation for the fall, he could see long strands of hair that covered the face of the unconscious person. Spitting a few of the locks of hair out of his mouth, he noticed the notebook that seemed to be burrowed in the arms of the body.

“It’s a girl!”

“What the hell’s a girl doing out here alone!?”

Crawling out from under the _girl,_ he realised with a frown she was an inch or two taller than him. Her face was covered in loose sand that seemed to have stuck to her sweat so it wasn’t really possible to see her features properly. Even her hair seemed to have a layer of dirt that stopped them from seeing it’s colour. Although from a guess he would say she couldn’t be that much older than him, in fact he would stake a couple cenz she was his age.

There was a pained groan from her.

“We should probably take her to Liore.” Al voiced, knowing they wouldn’t feel right by leaving her by herself when she clearly needed help. Ed nodded in agreement.

“How are we going to carry her? You’ll end up burning her.” He said, eyes not leaving the girl to make sure he was still breathing, “Metal heats up in sunlight, Al.” Sighing, he unclasped his coat and did his best to roll her in it to at least stop the sun from roasting her skin. Ed wondered how she had managed to not even get the slightest bit burned given she had obviously been there for some time.

“Maybe you should take her then, Ed.” A sly tone had crept into the boy’s voice as he misunderstood exactly why his brother’s gaze was trained to the girl.

Missing the meaning behind Al’s words, Ed grabbed the girl’s arms and hoisted her up and onto his back, using his coat as a way of tying her limbs together once they were wrapped around his torso. He groaned at the extra weight before continuing on his way to Liore.

* * *

 

Cliona could only stare at the large doors; the fear having left her body already. This place wasn’t something to be scared of, she ascertained. There was nobody here, except for the white statue. She wasn’t quite sure exactly where ‘here’ was, but she had an inkling that wasn’t comforting in the slightest. Her notebook was still suffocated into her chest though, the familiar trinket acting as more as another layer of clothes in this place. It was white as far as the she could see, stretching on for miles as if it was endless. She was unsure how long she had been here as her watch was frozen at 11:11.

“Strange.”

A giggle came from the statue then.

“…..What?” Cliona watched as it started to move towards her. She shuffled backwards and managing to trip on air. She couldn’t help but feel like one of those token girls in a horror film.

_“What? What what?”_

“No – I – wait – what is going on?”

_“You don’t seem in the slightest afraid, most curious.”_

She gazed up at the statue in wonder, trying to come with various different reasons as to how it was talking. She had already ascertained that it wasn’t a dream: the pinch mark on her forearm was proof.

_“You already know where you are, who I am, yet you seem to be unable to put the information where it is needed.”_ It cocked its head, _“I am Truth.”_ It seemed to grin.

Cliona took in a shudder of breath at the confirmation of her previous thoughts. It hadn’t taken her much time to recognise the place, although the idea that she was actually at the Gate had seemed impossible.

“But……the Gate is fictional. This entire _universe_ is fiction.” She mumbled.

_“Not at all, dear Cliona.”_ It was amused, _“It is simply another reality. One that you have stumbled into at my choice. I will admit that I expected some more protests.”_

“Would you like me to start yelling?” Cliona grumbled out. She knew Truth wouldn’t be able to do anything to her without her consent. It was all about equivalency here, and to take something from her she had to be willing to give it as well as gain something in return.

A laugh pierced her inner monologue, _“Not at all! I find you refreshing. Logical. Now all that’s left is what you are willing to give me in return for passage.”_

“Passage? I don’t even want to be here.”

_“Well you’re welcome to go back. Although I would say you have roughly another ten minutes to live that way.”_

“Why?”

_“You left one of the windows open, and unfortunately someone took it upon themselves to enter and **greet** you.”_

A cold rush passed through her, knowing exactly what Truth was detailing. She had heard the footsteps herself, as well as the almost mocking knocking on the door like they knew where she would be. Wrapping her arms around her torso, she shivered at the thought that if this hadn’t happened she would potentially be dead.

_“So you understand.”_

“Yes. I do.” Cliona ran a hand through her hair, an idea forming in her mind that would ultimately cause the less loss to her, “And I know what I will give you to let me pass.”

* * *

Cliona felt like she was floating, her body being jostled up and down occasionally as wind licked at her cheeks. It was hot, she thought, feeling a bead of sweat roll from her temple and disappearing into her hairline underneath her ear. Her mouth felt like sandpaper: dry and gritty from what she could only place as sand. She could hear people speaking around her, one right into her ear and another a foot or two away. The latter voice sounded like it was echoing within a confined space.

“I’m serious, Al! What if she’s some form of runaway murderer?”

“Then we just have to take her into custody and transport her to Central.”

Cliona felt a wave of fatigue wash over her, before it was sucked away into a gust of wind. Her eyes were heavy like lead, making it harder than usual to open them. She moved into a more comfortable position, effectively making the floating motion freeze.

“I think she’s waking up.”

It was a familiar voice, although she couldn’t quite place it at the moment. Finally winning the battle with her eyelids, she could see she was in some form of street. She realised she was on somebody’s back, and although usually this would be a stab to her pride, she realised that there wouldn’t be much hope in walking considering she couldn’t feel her toes. The numbness that had spread faded away, making her aware that her arms and legs were currently wrapped around the person carrying her. Immediately, Cliona had pushed herself backwards and onto the stone street. Her mouth was open in shock, as well as slight fear as the person fell to the floor with her.

“What the hell?” He groaned, sitting up to face her with a hand behind his head and rubbing at where he it had collided with the ground. “What was that for!?”

Cliona could have fainted again at the pair of molten gold eyes that were hazily looking at her in pain. They were warm, and bright, and honestly set off a feeling of butterflies in her stomach before they were digested as she remembered. With wide eyes, her hands went to her throat, clasping around it in desperation. The fact she was there meant Truth had taken her up on her offer.

“Hey! D’you have any idea how hard it was to lug you out of the desert?! How did you even get there in the first place?!”

Cliona turned her attention back to the boy in front of her, taking in the rest of his features: blond hair in a braid, tanned skin, and an automail arm. She didn’t need to be a genius to realise who it was.

Edward Elric.

Her wide eyes must have soothed his initially anger towards her, making him almost wither under the innocent gaze. He sighed, standing back up and offering a hand to help her up. She took it shakily, being brought up so that she stood slightly taller than the state alchemist.

“Look, can we at least know your name?”

_We?_

Turning around, Cliona was greeted with the sight of a suit of armour that towered over her. She felt the blood in her body still at the view. It was one thing to watch the anime, but seeing it in real life was almost threatening.

“Brother! She’s still in shock! How would you like it if you woke up with a couple of strangers?”

_Oh, trust me, you two are definitely not strangers._

Ed deflated at that, putting a hand to his forehead as he tapped his foot to an imaginary beat. He was thirsty, hungry, and definitely didn’t want to have to put up with some rag-tag girl that seemed to be looking at her surroundings like a frightened, yet curious bird.

_Where’s my notebook?_ Cliona searched the ground, shifting her gaze to the two alchemists in turn when she realised it wasn’t on her person. She went to paw at what she assumed were her pyjamas, instead feeling something cotton against her palm. Confused, she looked down and recognised it as Ed’s red coat. Surprised, she looked back up at the blond and opened her mouth to speak before shutting it close.

“What?” He cocked an eyebrow, realising she was about to say something, “Cat got your tongue?”

_No, but Truth has parts of my vocal chords if that makes it any better._ Cliona scowled at his tone, before pointing at her throat and shaking her head. It was Ed’s turn to be confused as a certain level of understanding seemed to pass through his thoughts.

“You _can’t_ speak.”

Cliona nodded even though it wasn’t a question. She suddenly felt uncomfortable as the brother’s gazes fell on her form in what she could see was something close to pity. They didn’t stare at her long however, swapping looks with each other as a silent conversation occurred between them. With a sigh, Ed groaned what sounded like ‘fine.’

“Look, maybe you can mime out your name or something? Can you write?”

Nodding furiously, Cliona went to reach for her notebook before realising it wasn’t there.

“Oh! Are you looking for this?” Al spoke up from behind her, the cheerful tone in his voice warming her slightly and taking some of the uncomforting atmosphere away. He opened up his chest piece, before taking out the familiar Pukka Pad and pen and passing it to her. Cliona gave a half smile in thanks and went to a blank page.

**My name is Cliona.**

The brothers looked at the A4 page she was brandishing to them, a grimace falling onto Ed’s face.

“I assume you have a different alphabet to us or something.”

Her eyes widened at that, looking down at the words she had so clearly scribbled down. Al must have noticed her expression as he started reassuring her that they would show her their alphabet for her to learn.

“What I want to know, is how you can understand Asmestrian without knowing how to write it.” Ed spoke up, shooting a distrusting glance at Cliona. She met his eyes and gave a very sarcastic shrug to annoy him. “Ack! Why you-!” He was about to continue when the smell of food caught his nose, and his stomach rumbled.

It only took them an hour before they were sitting at a form of bar, with two meals. One in front of Ed, and the other in front of Cliona. She was actually surprised that they’d bought her something at all, although she probably shouldn’t really have doubted it considering they were the heroes of the story for a reason. Nibbling on a piece of beef, she could hear the rapid rate at which the eldest Elric was wolfing down his food as well as drinking the juice given. She was almost finished in about double the time it took Ed to order another plate for himself, when the server switched on the radio.

_“God’s children who live upon this land, pray in faith and you shall be saved.”_

Cliona couldn’t help the eyebrow that shot up at that. She was an atheist in her own world, and had listened to her fair share of preaching but they had been nothing like this. She was tempted to draw Ed’s attention to it, maybe give him a slight hint as she was currently unable to communicate. That had been something she had bartered with Truth about.

Cliona would willingly give him her vocal chords, and a favour.

She knew it probably wasn’t the smartest thing to do, but it had gotten her out of losing a limb or her humanity which had come up a couple of times in the bartering. She also knew that what she offered wasn’t enough, as whenever she tried to think about what she was doing _before_ arriving at the Gate she couldn’t remember. In fact, the only things she could remember was that she had parents, an older brother, and that she didn’t want to go back. Basic knowledge was still there, just anything personal had been wiped clean from her mind. It was a weird feeling, she knew she should be upset about it but all she could feel was slightly uncomfortable. Why was it that she gave up her memories, yet protected the ones involving Fullmetal Alchemist? Even those memories were tainted, broken into shards in her mind.

It didn’t sit well that Truth had taken a form of liking towards her either. It had told her right before pushing her through the Gate.

“So, what _are_ you guys, like street performers or somethin’?”

Cliona couldn’t help but choke on a piece of beef that she had started to chew. Her eyes flicked to watch the blond spit out his orange juice. Clapping a hand over her mouth, she giggled silently at the expression on his face.

“Seriously? Do we look like street performers to you?”

“Yeah that’s why I asked.” The man said, looking the picture of innocent.

Ed put his juice down, before jumping out of the seat which made Cliona laugh even harder at the sudden dip in height.  “Let’s go, Al, Pink.”

The brothers had given her the nickname for now, as there wasn’t any way for them to know her name. If she was being honest, it didn’t bother her too much as they were referencing the colour of her clothes. They had even gone through a list of potential names, before deciding on the least embarrassing one that would make a small amount of sense. It was actually quite strange that nobody had realised that they pyjamas given the image of a sleeping bunny on the top but she wasn’t exactly about to announce it. Well, she _couldn’t_ really.

An image of a broken radio flashed behind Cliona’s eyelids as she turned to follow the boys, and sure enough the sound of something smashing against the floor made her look down. The unmistakable absence of the preacher’s voice was a blessing in disguise which made her give a wry grin.

“Hey! Easy! I didn’t _mean_ anything by it!”

A sheepish look crept up Ed’s face, “Don’t worry, we’ll fix it.”

“How’s that? It’s smashed to hell!”

“Watch and learn.”

Cliona’s attention snapped to the blond, reaching out to tug at his red coat gently. She had given it back after they had gone to eat, mainly because she couldn’t stand the heat of having it on her as well.

“Hm?” Ed looked at her, “What? Never seen alchemy before?”

Shaking her head, she pointed at the circle Al was beginning to draw on the ground in excitement. She wondered if it would be like in the anime with the flash of blue light, or rather if there would be something else. Ed noticed the sudden enthusiasm from the girl and couldn’t help but grin.

“Well consider yourself lucky, Pink,” He announced with a bit of an ego, “Your first experience in alchemy will be by the one and only Alphonse.”

Cliona’s smile turned to the suit of armour that seemed to be embarrassed by the sudden praise. Releasing her grip on Ed’s coat, she got up so she was right behind Al to watch him. There were triangles in it, and for a moment she could have sworn she was standing in another room staring down at blue ink. She turned her hands palm side up as she felt something wet cover them.

_I’m just going insane, that’s fine too._

Al’s clapping brought her out of her thoughts as a brilliant pale blue light burst through the chalk markings, encasing the broken radio pieces that were in the middle. She hadn’t even realised the crowd that had been drawn to their strange trio. Cliona blinked and suddenly it was all over, and standing in the circle was a functioning radio that carried the familiar preaching voice.

“There, see? How’s that?” Ed asked the man.

“Amazing, it’s a miracle! You’ve been touched by the Sun God, just like Father Cornello!”

“Touched by who now?”

“It’s not a miracle. It’s alchemy.” Al explained kindly, trying to cover for his brother’s obvious deflated attitude.

“Oh, so you two are alchemists. Right, I’ve heard of them.” Someone in the crowd said.

“Then, maybe you’ve heard of us! We’re the Elric Brothers.” Ed announced, crossing his arms out of pride. Cliona pursed her lips to try keep her smile under control, as she knew how this was going to go.

“The Elric brothers, you say?”  
“Wait I do know that name!”

“Edward Elric! The Fullmetal Alchemist!”

Just like Cliona had envisioned, the crowd flocked to the wrong brother and started showering him with praise over being the youngest State Alchemists in history. She moved beside Ed and began patting his back out of condolences for the mix up.

“No! Um, it’s not me!” Al’s voice cut through the men, making them all turn around to face the blond.

“What? You mean it’s the little guy over there?”

_Oh no._

“WHO’S LITTLE!? COME HERE AND SAY THAT TO MY FACE I DARE YA!”


	2. A False Prophet

_These guys are fucking crazy,_ Cliona thought as the men started rambling on about how Father Cornello could bring back the dead, as well as preform all sorts of other miracles. She was half-hiding behind Al to make some form of distance between her and the crowd. She chanced a look at Ed who also seemed to be thinking something along the same lines as her. Although his expression was leaning more towards scorn. She wouldn’t blame him for that.

“This guy is claiming he can bring the dead back to life? Now this is something I’ve gotta see.”

They didn’t hang around much longer after Ed’s statement, having asked one of the men where they could find him. Cliona stared for a fraction longer at one of them, noticing the almost crazed gleam in his eye. It was disturbing to see that much devotion and faith in someone she would have almost labelled as a demon. She couldn’t help but feel sorry for them.

“Pink!” Al called from a few steps behind her, reminding her that she was technically ‘under their observation until they reached Central.’ The boys had decided she was an immigrant, and currently illegal which meant that until further notice (otherwise known as until Cliona learned their alphabet) she was officially under some polite version of ‘arrest.’ It was hard to really care, as she was lucky enough to be stuck with the two people she was inevitably going to look for after stepping through the Gate. At least, Truth hadn’t been _too_ much of an asshole when he sent her off. Her somehow ‘fortunate’ arrival to Amestris was most likely due to the fact Truth had taken a few things more from her than she had been willing to give up.

Turning on her slipper’s non-existent heel, she sped off in the direction of the brothers, catching up to them just before they turned a corner. Her shoes were thin, without a back to them which made the whole process of walking awkward. Cliona scowled as she realised Ed wasn’t even paying attention to the fact he was near-running through the streets making it harder to keep up. Al also seemed to notice as he just gave her a nervous giggle that was supposed to apologise on behalf of the older one. They went around another corner, where the street seemed to lead to into an open area.

There was a large crowd, all facing a white building that seemed to be a form of church. A bald man in a black garb had his arms outstretched as flowers fell around him. He caught one in his palm, and there was a flash of red light before a statue of steel wrapped around him, complete with floral ornaments. Cliona flinched, a cold feeling creeping into her chest at the ‘miracle.’

“So that’s it, huh? Wha’dya think?” Ed said, hand raised to block some of the sunlight that shined down.

“There’s nothing _to_ think. That’s alchemy, no doubt about it!”

Cliona was about to nod in agreement when she turned to look at the brothers and noticed the wooden box Ed had to stand on to see over the crowd’s heads. Her lips twisted into a maintained grin that probably came across as a grimace to everyone around her. She tuned out the rest of their conversation, focused on the scene playing out in front of the church. She could just make out the bell tower from here, and the figure that was standing on the top floor. Squinting, she could roughly see long dark hair.

“Pink? You coming?” A hand tapped her on the shoulder, breaking her gaze and turning it to the blond. Nodding, she followed the two as they turned into a side alley and seemed to make their way towards the Church from another angle.

“What do you think about this?”

The only reason, Cliona realised Ed was addressing her was the fact he hadn’t added on the usual ‘Al.’ Cocking her head, she pointed to her mouth.

_I can’t exactly talk, you ninny._

“I know you can’t tell us, _exactly_ what you think, but can you try mime it or something?”

Cliona pursed her lips before nodding briefly. She wrapped her arms around her torso and then shivered dramatically for effect.

“You’re cold? Really? You know we’re in a desert.”

Her deadpan look must have been seen by Alphone who suddenly started having a coughing fit to hide his laughter, “No, brother. I think she means she’s scared.” He managed to say between giggles. Cliona scrunched her nose up, before extending her hand and shaking it in the universal symbol for ‘sorta.’

“So not scared?”

She puffed out her cheeks in thought. Showing she was about to try explain herself again, then acted like she was being followed by someone.   
“Oh! Um, you want to dance?”

Cliona gave up after that, the guesses becoming wilder and wilder with every one she shot down.

_Uneasy. How hard is it to guess uneasy?_

They made it to the side entrance to the Church, and slipped in without so much as anybody batting an eye. The people here lacked the ability to be suspicious, Cliona summed up, they were probably under the impression Father Cornello would protect them from any outside harm.

_I’m pretty sure Cornello was a type of ice-cream…..._

Al stopped abruptly, making her whack her nose off the back of his armour. Without thinking, her mouth started forming various swear words as she continued to curse silently.

“So, this is the all mighty Leto.”

Cliona rubbed at her red nose, grateful that it wasn’t broken or bleeding. She shifted to the left so she could see the woman Ed was speaking to. She was pretty, with dark brown hair and pink bangs. A name crossed her mind: Rose. She was kneeling at the altar, but quickly stood up to brush some dirt off of her dress.

“Welcome! Are you interested in Letoism?”

“Nope, can’t say I am. Not really the religious type.”

_Cornello? Cortetto? Corbetto? It was something like that……._

Rose looked down in what seemed like some form of pity for the unbeliever, “Well I’m sorry to hear that. To know God, is to know hope.”

_Cantaloupe? Courtesse?….. is that even a word?_

“If we believe in Divine Grace, and through him, all things are possible,” The woman seemed to puff up with some sort of pride, “If you believed, I’m sure Leto would bless you and make you grow taller!”

“What’s that supposed to mean!?”

“She’s just trying to help, brother!” Al tried calming him down, keeping him a good few inches away from the brunette who looked none the wiser about the backhanded statement she had just given.

Cliona smirked at the scene and reached out her hand to tug on Ed’s coat, effectively catching his attention. She motioned towards the wooden bench for them to sit. Her fingers stayed wrapped in the red fabric as the two continued to bicker. She was studying the architecture of the inner Church and wondering how long it must have taken for them to build it. If it was around the three-year mark, like she suspected, it meant that the people here were already too far gone along the path of devotees to be _told_ their prophet was a fake. The natural response to any sort of explanation the brothers could give would immediately be met with hostility and a retaliation of some sort.

Her musing was cut short however when Ed went to take a leather journal from his coat pocket, the movement momentarily giving her a form of shock. He noticed how she was grasping at his clothes, but said nothing. It was a form of comfort, he realised, as she didn’t seem to be able to know where she was or who she could trust. All that she really could tell was that he had helped her. Sighing, he ran a hand through his hair before listing off elements as well as their required quantity.

Ed snapped the journal closed, “That list represents the complete chemical makeup of a human body for the average adult. It’s been calculated to the last microgram, but still, there’s never been one reported case of successfully creating a human life.”

Cliona bowed her head to hide her flinch at the subtle jab at what the brothers had tried to do. She focused her attention on her hands, weaving them together to try avoid the inevitable argument.

“And you’re telling me something modern science can’t do, you can do with _prayer?”_

She had the urge to elbow him to make him stop. It was alright to say your opinions on the matter, but trying to force them down someone else’s throat was just unnecessary. This was Rose’s religion, and her beliefs should be treated with respect even if Letoism was made up. It would just make her less receptive to them. There was no point in arguing with her about it.

“Lift thy voice to God, and the prayers of the faithful shall be answered!”

“Did I mention those ingredients I listed off,” Ed slung his arms behind his head as a cheap smile broke out on his face in an attempt to diffuse the tension, “A kid could buy them all at the market for the spare coin in his pocket.”

_Don’t say it._

“As it turns out, humans are pretty cheap.”

_Oh, you dick._

Cliona knew the only reason Rose was so invested in this whole scam was that there was a glimmer of hope of getting the man she loved back from the grave. She soundlessly winced at the look in the other girl’s eyes: devastation.

“No! That’s blasphemy! People are…... we are all children of God, created in his image…”

“You have to understand. Alchemists are scientists. We don’t believe in unprovable concepts like creators or Gods.”

_Then what **is** Truth, if not a God or a creator? Is he then a provable concept? _

“We lay bare the creative principles of this world, and pursue truth. It’s ironic really that through the application of science, we have been given in many ways the power to play Gods ourselves.”

“So, you’re putting yourself on the same level as God?” Rose’s hands curled into fists, “That’s just sheer arrogance!” 

“You know there’s an old myth about a hero who flew on wings of wax. He thought he could touch the sun, but when he flew to close his wings melted and he came crashing back down to Earth. Right Al?”

Cliona shot a look towards Alphonse, wondering how even when in a suit of armour, she could still pick up the aura of contempt surrounding him. She got up from the bench and went to stand next to him, not trusting herself to not jab Ed for being an irrational idiot about the situation. It would have been much easier to get to Father Cornello by being nice to Rose, instead of insulting what she believed in as well as unintentionally saying she would never see her lover again. Cliona tapped on the metal arm that was nearest her, trying to get her point across in rapid eye movements. If Ed went on any longer about how Rose’s life was a sham, she was positive they wouldn’t be getting anywhere anytime soon.

“Brother.” The scolding tone was enough confirmation that Al had understood her miniscule, jerky movements.

Gold eyes flashed to Cliona in time to see the disapproving look she was shooting him.

“I’m sorry, miss. This is difficult for me to ask, but do you think your Father Cornello could save an arrogant scientist like me?” He bowed for extra effect.

 Rose’s hands clasped together in joy, completely forgetting how just moments ago Ed was berating the entire foundation of Letoism. “Of course, that’s wonderful! If anyone can lead you to the creator’s light, he can!”

_Okay, Rose is officially an idiot too._

* * *

 

Cliona fell in step with Rose who stayed near the back of the group. They had been led to one of the arched doors in the front church which had opened up to reveal a labyrinth of corridors. Nobody spoke besides their guide, who gave Cliona the creeps.

“This way please,” He said opening another large door, “Father Cornello is a busy man, as you can imagine.”

The creaking sound of the door distracted Cliona momentarily, giving her a lapse in judgement as she stopped to take in the sketchy room. It was dark, and there seemed to be nobody inside but them.

“But you’re in luck, he has decided to spare a moment for you.”

“Yeah? Thanks! We understand, we won’t take up too much of his time.” Ed didn’t seem to be picking up on the definite murderer vibes Cliona was getting from the man.

“Good, then it’s agreed. We’ll make this quick.”

A hand wrapped itself around her shoulder, pulling her back into a guard that had seemingly come out of nowhere. Cliona whipped her head around, spotting Ed a few steps ahead of her with a pair of men restraining him using their weapons. The man had pulled out a gun and was aiming it straight at Al’s helmet. There was a resounding _bang_ as the trigger was pulled and the suit of armour dropped to the floor. She watched as Rose let out a horrified scream at the sight, whipping around to see the guards that were restraining the other two.

“Brother! What is the meaning of this!?” The brunette yelled, tears collecting in the corner of her eyes that narrowed.

“Rose, these men are heretics that were going to trap the Father. They’re demons!”

_I guess I’m just chopped liver then._

“No! If that’s why, then Father Cornello would surely have never allowed them to-!”

“He _has_ allowed this,” A sly smirk settled on his face, as he held the gun up again, “The words of Father Cornello are the words of God….. This is God’s will!” He stared deranged down the barrel of the weapon as it pointed at Cliona.

_Wait, what? What happened to being chopped liver!?_ With wide eyes, she couldn’t hide the way her shoulders tightened as the man’s finger snaked around the trigger and licked his top lip. It was supposed to be Ed on the other side of the gun, wasn’t it? Voices and images rolled around in her mind as she tried to remember. There was a blackness that encased most of the pictures, dimming them to be almost unrecognisable.

“Oh?”

Cliona snapped out of her thoughts, and felt her heart lurched in relief as Alphonse’s hand clasped around the gun, effectively manoeuvring it so it was no longer aimed at her head.

“That’s a mean God.”

Ed’s movements were nothing but a blur as he elbowed his captors in the stomach before flipping them onto the ground. There was a sickening sound of bone breaking as Al slammed his fist into the Brother’s face. Cliona’s guard released his grip rather quickly, turning to run. Thinking fast, the blond alchemist picked up the familiar helmet and hurled it, hitting him squarely into unconsciousness.

“Strike!”

“My head!”

Cliona couldn’t help but clap for Ed, albeit slowly so it probably came off as sarcastic but that seemed to go right over his head. Al jogged to where he could hear his brother was, bending on so Ed could check his blood seal.

“Wh-wh-what’s going on!? Why is he hollow!?” Rose cried, face pale as she watched the duo bicker and the other girl casually rock on the balls of her feet. Cliona spotted the helmet as it rolled to a stop a few steps from her, she snatched it and cradled it close to her chest in an effort to keep from dropping it. She didn’t think it was a good idea to approach the boys right at this moment.

“It’s always-” Ed rapped his fingers on Al’s chest piece.

“-been like this.”

“You mean…There’s nothing inside! He’s completely hollow!”

Cliona didn’t miss the way their eyes seemed to tray to her for a moment, assessing the calm atmosphere she seemed to be wrapped up in, almost like she already knew.  Giving an encouraging smile, she walked towards them and handed the helmet over, leaving them in a stunned silence.

Al recovered quicker, “This is what happens when you trespass into God’s forbidden domain.” His hands went to work at trying to repair himself, “And my brother, Edward, too.”

“Too?”

“Okay! Let’s stop this topic, please!” Ed gave an irritated pout, scratching the back of his neck out of faux annoyance at the sudden reveal of personal information. Cliona could see through it, noticing the tell-tale sign of discomfort as he grit his teeth, “ _This_ is God’s true nature, Rose.”

“No! There has to be some sort of mistake!

“Geez, this woman’s already seen this much and she _still_ believes in that fraud of a Father.” Ed’s complaint went unheard by the other woman who started giving theories on how her God was still innocent of the things they had insinuated. Sighing, he noticed Cliona who seemed to want to hit Rose for her rambling and gave him a wry grin, “Do you have the guts to see the Truth?”

* * *

 

Cliona had never been so close to another person in her life, and quickly realised the reason for it. She hated the way other people felt. Her eyes narrowed as she could hear Rose’s shallow breaths that echoed annoyingly in Al’s chest piece. She wasn’t even trying to be mindful of Cliona’s personal bubble, popping it within the first ten seconds of having been cooped up together. There was another jostled, and she mouthed a rather impressive curse as the older girl came flying on top of her, crushing her with her boobs.

Hissing, Cliona spat out some of the pink hair that had managed to wedge itself into her mouth. Sweat was beading at her forehead from the heat. Taking the original temperature of the desert and then being jammed into an enclosed space with another body, easily made it almost unbearable.

She couldn’t even hear the boys talking that well, their voices muffled through the metal as well as the strange throw-over Al seemed to have put on. Occasionally there was the definite tone of Ed’s voice that rang through, followed by a much deeper one. Rose had whispered it was Father Cornello.

_Corvetto? Cornabillo? Corsetto? It’s something along those lines…. Maybe it’s the ‘o’ that isn’t right._

There was a slight _ding,_ as the chest piece popped minutely to allow the two girls to hear the conversation better.

“…You’ve made a religion through fraud. What do you want? If it’s money, you can use the stone to get as much as you want.” Ed spoke, from the uplift in his words Cliona could tell he was trying not to smirk.

“It isn’t money. No, I want money, but even if I remain silent it will enter my wallet though donations from my believers, you see. On the other hand, I need obedient believers who would be happy to throw their lives away for me.”

She stole a glance towards the tanned girl who was currently shaking, and looked inches away from crying. Against her better judgement, Cliona placed a hand on hers in comfort which was suddenly squeezed for strength.

“The greatest army in the world! One that doesn’t fear _death!_ I’ve steadily advanced my preparations. Behold! After several years, this country will be _mine.”_

Wet drops fell onto Cliona’s shoulder who felt a bolt of sympathy shoot through her. Her other free hand was inevitably used to wrap Rose into a semi-awkward hug, leaning more towards the woman simply clinging to her as she cried lightly. Edward’s laughter bounced off the sides of Al’s armour, ringing clearly and loud enough to shock the girls out of the strange stupor.

“Nope. Don’t care.”

“What!? Don’t say a couple of words about my plans like ‘don’t care’! You ….. aren’t you from one of the surrounding countries!? In the Army!?”

An angry swipe of Rose’s arm made Cliona flinch as she wiped the tears from her cheeks.

“I guess you could say that. Country, army? Dunno much about stuff like that.”

The mute pocked a thin finger through the crack opening, wrapping it around the chest piece to push it open a little bit more.

“I’ll get straight to the point. Give me the Philosopher’s Stone and I won’t say a word about your fraudulence to the people of this city!”

“Ha! You’re trying to bargain with _me?_ My followers won’t believe a word from the likes of you! I am loved by them! They are my faithful servants! That’s right, no matter _how much_ you yell they will never believe you! My stupid followers will never believe a word from you!”

Rose was vibrating from emotion behind Cliona, her fingers now digging into the younger girl’s hand hard enough to crack skin and leave crescent moons behind. A silent wince left Cliona’s mouth as she recoiled from the pain. There was a slow clap that she could only think belonged to Ed.

“Well, I didn’t expect anything less of the Father, and Founder.” A mocking tone had entered his voice, “Thank you for letting us hear such a splendid speech. Yeah, maybe your followers won’t believe a word we say,” Metal fingers slipped between the opening and wrenched the chest piece off completely, “But! What about what she’d say?”

Rose was staring in shock at the Father, ignoring the girl that had once again been crushed under her bust. She was already jumping out of the space, giving Cliona small bit of relief now that she could breathe properly again.

“Father! Is what you just said true!?” The force at which the brunette moved sent Al stumbling back a step, “Have you tricked us!? The miracle of God’s power…… You weren’t going to grant me my wish? You weren’t going to bring him back!?” Tears had leapt up at the last word, making it difficult to talk.

There was a strained silence, an ill-boding moment Cliona recognised. Something was brewing in the fake father’s mind. Sitting a little further back into Al’s chest piece, she tried to cover herself so as not to attract attention.

“Hm…maybe being the messenger of God, was a lie….. but with this stone, and Human Transmutation that countless alchemists have failed at, your lover can be resurrected!”

_She wouldn’t be that stupid, as to join him….._

“Rose! Don’t listen to him!” Al pleaded, obviously catching an expression the girl inside of him couldn’t. Frowning, Cliona then saw the emotion smothering the woman’s face.

_You wouldn’t….._

“Come now, be a good child.”

“If you go you won’t be able to come back!”

“What’s wrong? You are one of us.”

“Rose!”

“Am I not the only one that can grant your wish? Remember your beloved!”

A tremble ran through Rose’s body, one that let Cliona know what was about to happen.

“Well!?”

“I’m sorry you two, this is the only thing I can rely on…..”

She launched herself out of Al just as Rose began to walk towards Father Cornello. Hands grabbed at the brunette’s wrist as she spun her around. The sound of skin hitting skin resonated as Cliona’s palm stung, her eyes looking down in anger at the girl who had fallen backwards onto the floor.

_Idiot. This isn’t going to help you, **he** isn’t going to help you and **you know that.** What do you gain from betraying them? Nothing, but an easier life as a sheep. _

“Pink! What do you think you’re doing!?” Ed yelled, dragging the furious mute away from Rose who stared at her with a hand on her cheek in shock. Obviously, the sudden shock from the previously mellow girl who had comforted her was taking its toll. Shame was steadily entering her gaze that stayed locked on Cliona who didn’t bother looking back.

“Good child,” Father Cornello’s voice broke the tense silence, “Now, I will have to purge these heretics that threaten the future of my religion.” He grabbed a lever, and pulled. Clinking chains filled the room as what seemed like a tail entered Cliona’s peripheral vision.

“This philosopher’s stone is a really impressive thing. It can make things like this,” A creature staggered out from the darkness behind a previously closed gate, “Is this the first time you’ve seen a chimera?”

The animal had the head of a lion, although with scales that ran up the left side and encased the eye. Its tail was from a lizard, and swiped the ground in agitation as it got ready to pounce. Its canine teeth were large, and pointed. Paling, Cliona took a few steps backwards and started scanning the room for places she could stay to get away from the inevitable battle. She couldn’t fight. It would be useless to try to, unless she had a death wish.

“Well then I suppose I’ll need a weapon!” A clap of hands, and a bright flash of light signalled that Ed had just transmuted himself something to use: a long metallic spear. The chimera launched itself forward and reached out, claws going through it like butter and tearing at his clothes.

“Edward!” Rose screamed, panicked.

Cliona glared, she didn’t deserve to be worried, she had chosen her grave to lie in.

“How is that!?” Father Cornello laughed, “How do claws that can cut through iron feel?”

The state alchemist’s bangs hid his face from them, although due to the fact Cliona was hiding a bit behind Al she managed to catch the way his mouth twisted into a grin, “What was that?”  
The chimera’s claws snapped off, falling to the ground. There was a roar of pain before it attacked again.

“Sorry, but this is made a bit _special.”_

“What happened!? If the claws won’t work, _bite him!”_

Teeth sank into Ed’s arm, a ferocious growl resonating which quickly turned to whimpers of pain.

“What’s wrong stupid cat? Get a good taste.” He said darkly, before kicking straight upwards and getting the chimera in the face, shattering teeth and bone.

“Get a good look, Rose! _This_ is Human Transmutation….The bodies of sinners that have breached God’s domain.” Fabric had ripped, and stretched, partially wrecking his otherwise intact clothes that exposed his automail. Ed didn’t bother with it, simply ripping off his coat and tossing it on the ground so he could fight better.

“Artificial limbs of steel, ‘automail’…… I see now, this is why you’re named the Fullmetal Alchemist!”

“Come and get some you third rate! I’ll show you the difference between us!”

A low chuckle came from Father Cornello, “I see, I see. This is the reason behind the mystery of why a brat like you could earn the title of Fullmetal.” He cocked an eye towards Rose, “Take a good look at these men, Rose. They have performed something that is forbidden amongst Alchemists, they have performed Human Transmutation. They’ve committed the greatest crime!”

_One that you are offering for Rose to do in return of loyalty._

Cliona didn’t pay much attention as Ed and Al began recounting exactly _how_ and _why_ they committed the taboo. She already knew, and at this current point in time it wasn’t all too vital to listen to as she scanned the room for a way to escape in case this all went south.

“Brother traded his right arm to bind my soul to this armour.”

“This is the mess that happens when two people try to resurrect a single person from the dead. _This_ is what resurrecting someone _means,_ Rose. You got the guts to do it? Huh? Do you!?” Ed shouted at the brunette who was looking closer and closer to having a breakdown right there and then.

“I see, I see. And so, you want the Philosopher Stone? If you use this, then your transmutation would be perfect!”

“Don’t get me wrong, baldy. We just want that stone back to get our original bodies back.” A shark-tooth smile appeared on his face, “What I want most is to be like I was before.”  
“Mr. Cornello, we’ll say it again. Give us the stone while you’re still not hurt.” Alphonse added, raising his fist in a threatening manner. Cliona copied his movement, more for moral support than anything as she didn’t look like she could crack an egg, let alone punch someone.

“You stupid fools who came too close to God and fell,” There was another transmutation, “This time I will have to send you to God myself!”

A storm of bullets were released from the machine gun positioned on the man’s shoulders, hitting the floor and causing a cloud of smoke to coat the area. It was a form of camouflage, Cliona realised, using it to her advantage.  Just as she was about to move, she felt a steel arm wrap around her waist and pull her back into a torso.

“Pink, c’mon we gotta go!”

Nodding, she turned her head just in time to see Al grab Rose and run towards them as well. She could see the fearful look on her face, as she was shielded from the onslaught of bullets.

“Al! We’re getting out of here!” Ed called, his grip tightening.

“Fools! That exit won’t open unless I command it to from here!” Father Cornello shouted over the sound of the machine gun gleefully.

_He really doesn’t understand alchemy does he?_

“Oh, really?” Ed grinned, releasing Cliona for a moment before clapping and slapping his hands to the wall. There was a flash of light as the wall disappeared to make way for a door that he slammed open, reaching back to grab Cliona again, “If there ain’t a door, I’ll make one!”

She felt her legs leave the ground as she was tossed over Ed’s shoulder, her head continuously hitting his back as they ran down a random hallway. She could hear the men being ordered to chase them, and as they turned a corner there was already a group of guards waiting for them.

“The kids really gonna fight with us?” One of them spoke.

“Before you get hurt, just give up and give u-”

_Clap._

Cliona placed her face in her hand as she heard the men start yelling in surprise. She was jostled side to side, as Ed made his way through them, efficiently knocking them out.

“Out of the way!” Al said, kicking one of the others in the face before tearing down the corridor and into another. They passed by an open door which caught Ed’s attention.

“Oh? What’s this room?”

“This is where Father Cornello does his broadcasting.” Rose answered, being put on the floor gently by Alphonse.

_Why aren’t I allowed down!? Edward!_

“He’s planning something evil……..” The suir of armour whispered to the brunette who seemed equally disturbed at the look on his face.

* * *

 

Cliona sat on the railing of the Bell tower, swinging her legs aimlessly as she enjoyed the wind that blew and lifted her hair. Rose was also there, talking with Al about why he had to steal the bell.

“If we want to pay something, we have to pay a cost. Brother is called a genius because he paid through effort, so brother is like this now.”

“But, because you paid the sacrifice your mother must have been…..”

The mute rolled her eyes at the older girl’s naivety. At first she had been sympathetic, and even enjoyed the limited conversation they had had together. She was even willing to defend her, albeit silently, from Ed. The fact she had willingly changed sides after being told their Father was a fake, was incredibly close to betrayal in Cliona’s mind. She wasn’t a very forgiving person, and neither was she able to deal with ignorance like the type Rose oozed.

“The body couldn’t have been called human.” Came Alphonse reply, a stick of chalk in his hand as he continued to draw the transmutation circle, “Brother and I quit working with human transmutation, but brother wants to return me to my original body, and I want to return him to the way he was before. It’s risky, and we’ll probably pay for it with our lives, but it’s the path we’ve chosen.”

Cliona’s eyes flickered to the two, taking in the way Rose seemed almost reluctant to admit something.

“That’s why you mustn’t be like us, Rose.”

_Clap._

She felt the warmth from the alchemy spark in the air, and watched how a replica of a speaker appeared, complete with wiring that led back to the broadcasting room in the Church of Leto. No sooner was it finished, did the voice of Father Cornello burst through, detailing how his followers were his pawns for war and how he was effectively a fake. A smirk broke out on Cliona’s face as she saw the people in the streets freeze as they listened.

“When- When did you push that button!?”

“From the beginning. All uncut.”

“H-H-How could you do this!?”

“You….You brat….I’ll kill you!”

“Too late!”

The sound cut off then, leaving the city in an uncomfortable and stunned silence. Alphonse and Rose looked at each other, one upset with the turn of events, the other worried. Cliona hopped off the railing, and grabbed onto Al’s arm and tugged before pointing to the Church again.

“You want us to go?”

_Nod._

Static cursed through the air, and became stronger the closer they got. Already they were a street away, and were making what they thought was good time until there was a loud, grating noise that shook the homes around them slightly. Cliona was the first to spot the first-shaped stone that dug through the ground near the fallen body of Father Cornello. She paused to look at the indents the impact of the stone had made, admiring the dents in the groundwork of what looked like granite.

“So, it was another fake?”

“Yeah, just another dead end,” Ed sighed, having slumped down into a sitting position next to Al, “And I finally thought I could restore you.”

“I’m more worried about you! Automail causes a lot of problems……”

“Can’t help it. We’ll have to look elsewhere.”

Cliona made a move to join the brothers, still not forgetting the ‘polite arrest’ she was technically under, when she spotted Rose having sunk to her knees on the dusty ground.

“No……This has to be a lie because…..he said he could bring him back…..”  
“Rose, give it up.” Ed spoke harshly, ignoring the distress the girl was currently in. He would have been elbowed by Cliona for being insensitive, if not for the unsettled bitterness in her at how the girl had thrown them away earlier to follow baldy.

“Why does it have to be like this? What am I supposed to do now? How am I supposed to live now!?” Rose yelled, crying heavily as her fists bunched up her dress, “Tell me! Please!” Her head had ducked, hiding her face as she continued to sob.

Edward sighed, feeling a strike of pity for the woman, “Think about that on your own. Stand up and walk. After all, you have perfectly good legs to stand on.” He walked away then, tailed by Alphonse. Their shadows were long as they were casted by the setting sun. Cliona could almost grimace at the empty look Rose was casting into the sky.

_The boys aren’t very good at the emotional half of things, huh?_

Kneeling down in front of the brunette, she noticed just how empty her eyes were as they gazed at nothing in particular. She looped her arms around her shoulders and brought her close for a hug. Cliona wasn’t as uncomfortable this time, having already been subjected to the woman’s body being crashed into her in a much closer proximity.

“Why?” Rose’s voice cracked, as her head rested on the other girl’s shoulder.

_Because I’m a good person.... at least I try to be anyway._

Squeezing her tighter, she felt her shake and a wetness seeping through her pyjama top as she cried. Cliona didn’t let go of her, until she heard herself being called by the Elric brothers.


	3. An Abandoned Town

The train jostled slightly, rocking from side to side sweetly as the countryside flew by outside the window. Cliona was on the ground, her fingers wrapped around the ledge of the window and peered out with childish curiosity to observe the scenery of her new world. She was oblivious to the stares the Elric brothers were exchanging as well as throwing in her direction, however she wasn’t deaf as they began to talk.

“D’you think she’s ever been on a train before?” Ed asked his brother, leaning across the aisle in their compartment as he stage whispered.

“I don’t know, brother. Should we ask her?”

“What if we offend her? For all we know it’s a sensitive topic! Maybe they don’t have trains wherever she’s from? She could be from a village of people who still use sticks as spoons.”

Scowling at the idiotic notion, she looked over her shoulder and gave a shallow glare towards the blond who leaned back with a nervous laugh. She knew he was exaggerating to add some humour into the conversation, but it still wasn’t welcomed at the moment. He scratched behind his neck, a certain rose hue crawling over his upper cheeks as he flushed from embarrassment.

“Look, we can’t be blamed for assuming things. You haven’t exactly told us anything.”

Cliona’s eyebrow rose, a haughty look appearing.

“Okay, okay, so you can’t exactly _tell us,_ I get it, really I do, but d’you not think –” Ed was cut off as Alphonse let out a gasp of realisation, his fist connecting with his outstretched palm as he remembered something.

“Brother! We promised to teach her our alphabet, remember?”

Her eyes widened at that, her mind bringing forward how when they had first realised she couldn’t write Amestrian that Al had been all too willing to show her how it was written. Reaching inside his chest-piece, the suit of armour brought out the notebook as well as the pen that he had already guessed was what she wrote with usually. The brothers hadn’t taken a peak into her notes, and even if they had they wouldn’t have known what she was writing anyway. Al passed the objects to Cliona, and invited her to sit on the bench beside Ed who also said he would help.

“We write different symbols depending on what we’ve pared the consonant with…….”

The next hour was filled with Al giving an example of a sound, Ed writing it in their form of text, and Cliona translating it into her alphabet for reference. It took up one page, back and front, and honestly looked a bit like chicken scratchings on her part. They hadn’t given her much time before they were listing off another sound that she had to get down. Edward had guided her hand a few times when she tried to practice some of the more complicated symbols. They were pretty, she thought. Each one was comprised of a swirl or two, with a few lines that ran through it.

“So, now that that’s done, d’you think you can try write your name for us? It feels a bit rude calling you Pink all the time.”

Cliona smiled at the cross between a pout and a grimace that crossed Ed’s face, before nodding and flipping to a blank page. She had to flick back between each stroke of her pen to know what exactly she had to do, and after much longer than she would have hoped, legible words were written shakily on the page.

**_My name is Cliona_.**

“Cliona?” Ed repeated, looking at her for confirmation which he got in the form of a nod, “It’s definitely not something I’ve heard before.”

Alphonse added that it only proved their suspicions further about how she was an immigrant that somehow got passed the borders without being caught.

**_No._ **

“What do you mean no?”

Cliona bit on the end of her pen, scowling as she tried to piece together another string of symbols. She wondered if it was worth telling them this early that she wasn’t from this side of the Gate. If anything with their current lack of trust in her, they would call her a liar and she would end up alone in this place. Shaking her head, she ignored Al’s question and turned back to the window and watched the world pass by.

“No one’s on board.” The suit of armour commented, trying to break the sudden awkward atmosphere that had stemmed from their earlier conversation, “I heard rumours, but I didn’t think it would be this bad…..”

Ed folded the newspaper he was reading in half, “That’s because there’s nothing to see here.”

Cliona heard him mention the name of the town they were stopping in for the night, already anticipating what was going to face them there.

The train slowed down then, before halting completely at a derelict station. The smell of smoke hung heavily on the air, making her nose wrinkle as she wondered whether this world had experienced signs of Global Warming yet. They stepped out together, Al taking back her notebook and placing it in his chest piece for safe keeping. She kept the pen however, using it to pin her hair up in a bun like a stick.

“This is a little…..” Ed started, turning in a complete circle as they got further into the heart of the town, “I thought a coal mine would be a little livelier but…..”

“Everybody’s exhausted.”

The blond took a wrong step and was whacked in the back of the head by a metal strip, knocking him to the ground with a loud _thunk!_

“Whoops! Sorry.” A young boy said, turning around to check who he had hit, “Oh!”

“That hurt, you little-!”

“Are you guys tourists? Where’d you come from?”

“Ah, we’re-”

“Want food? Decided where you’re staying?”  
“No, but hold on-”

The little boy lit up, turning away from the crumpled form of an intimidated Ed and yelled, “Dad! Customers!”

“Listen to what other people are saying dammit!”

Cliona giggled behind her hand, watching the scene unfold. This part of her memory wasn’t tampered with, she was glad to realise. Truth must have deemed this part of the adventure as unimportant. A burly man answered his son’s call, covered from head to toe in dust and dirt.

“Hm? What is it, Kayal?”

_So, his name is Kayal._

“A customer! Revenue!”

“What do you mean by Revenue!?” Ed’s questions went unanswered as the duo ignored him completely.

* * *

 

They were seated in a tavern, beer already placed in men’s hands as they drank with each other. Cliona folded her hands together in her lap, sitting between Ed and Al who were on opposing sides of the table.

“Sorry if it’s a little dusty. The salary for coal miners is low, so I’m working at this store at the same time.” Kayal’s father explained, filling two glasses with familiar frothy ale. A group of his friends near the door started throwing in their little two-piece on the situation, shedding some humour in the dimly lit space.

“One night and three meals for three, right?” The man’s wife asked politely, an empty tray pressed gently to her chest. Cliona shook her head as the woman’s sight landed on her for an answer. She already knew they wouldn’t be staying much longer.

“How much?” The blond boy beside her asked.

“It’s expensive.”

“Fear not, I have plenty on me.” A smug, and challenging grin popping up on his face.

“200,000 if you and the girl agree to share a room!”

Ed blanched in shock, having almost fallen off his chair if Cliona hadn’t grabbed his sleeve.

“There’s nothing good about a rip-off like that!”

“That’s why I said it was ‘expensive.’ We have to cash from the rare tourists.”

_So, everybody here is a leech then._ She scoffed, leaning against her open palm to gaze away from the argument they were having.

“Don’t joke around! I’ll go somewhere else!” He raised a hand to wave goodbye, and was about to get away with it if Kayal’s father hadn’t suddenly clamped his hand over his head. A terrified squeal left Ed’s mouth as he felt the stare being sent his way. Shakily, he reached into his coat and pulled out his wallet to count how much he had actually bothered to keep on his person.

“Not enough…..”

Cliona watched as the brothers ducked behind their table and started whispering to each other in an attempt to come up with some form of plan. They didn’t notice Kayal slip into their little conversation.

“I could change this rock into gold through alchemy.”

“But Brother, isn’t gold transmutation illegal by national alchemist law?”

Ed rounded on Al, a dark look on his face, “If nobody finds out, we’re fine.” He let out a maniacal laugh that began dying off when he noticed the younger boy sitting next to him and giving him a curious stare. He dropped a shade in skin tone.

“Dad! This guy’s an alchemist!”

It wasn’t long before men had crowded around the brothers, each shoving broken tools and anything else they could find at them in the hope they’ll fix them. Cliona watched on as the woman from earlier placed three plates of food onto the table. Giving a gracious smile, she picked up her knife and fork and started digging into the steak and green beans. She only had a limited amount of time before they would be thrown out, anyway. The woman seemed to have ignored her previous request to not have anything either way, so eating it would be alright. The Elrics joined her a little while after, Ed salivating at the presence of meat.

“I used to do a little bit of alchemy before, didn’t have any talent, so I quit studying it.” Kayal’s father said conversationally as he brought over a glass of what Cliona sussed as beer, for the oldest Elric, “I’ll give you a discount as a favour to a fellow practitioner.”

“Alright.”

“That’ll be 100,00 with the huge discount.”

“That’s still expensive!” Ed shouted back, irritated.

“You still haven’t actually told me your name.”

“Oh right,” Ed picked up his utensils and started cutting into his food, “Edward Elric.”

There was a pause in the older man’s motions before he swiped the plate away as Ed went to stab a piece, “If you’re an alchemist named Elric, that would make you a national alchemist?”

“Maybe a little on the side.” He went to reach for his drink, seconds too slow as it was whisked away, “Hey! What’s your _problem?”_

“Get out!”

Cliona had already finished half her dinner, so wasn’t too deterred when she felt arms wrap around her torso and haul her out the door with the brothers. She wasn’t tossed out quite the same as the boys, more dropped onto the ground besides them.

“We’re customers! What gives!?”

“Shoo! We don’t have any meals of beds for a dog of the army!”

Al stuck his arm out tall, “I’m a normal person! I’m not a national anything!”

“Oh really!? Come on in, then!”

“TRAITOR!”

The mute girl stayed next to Ed who flopped onto his side as everyone else, including his brother went inside for another round of pints and food. Cliona gave him an awkward pat on the back, doing her best to comfort the hungry boy.

_Gosh, so dramatic._

“Oh, I forgot you were here, Clio.”

_Clio?_ She pulled a face at the nickname, not really used to somebody shortening her name.

“Okay, what about Leo?”

_Am I a boy?_

 “Look! Cliona’s a bit of a mouthful if we’re in a rush.” Ed stretched, turning himself around so he was facing the sky.

_At this rate, I prefer Pink._ Pouting, Cliona went beside the boy and lay down and started studying the stars and their position. She didn’t take into account how each constellation she had learned in science would be completely different here.

_Hey, Ed?_ She tugged on his sleeve.

“Yeah?”  
_What’s that one called?_ She pointed at a particularly bright star, and tried to count the others that framed it.

“They’re stars. Do you not have them where you’re from?” There was a cheeky tone in his voice, which gave Cliona reason to elbow him hard in the side. They stayed in companionable silence for a while, maybe ten minutes if she were to try guess before Ed’s stomach growled.

“I’m starving…….Damn it…..Damn you, Al…..”

A tray of food was presented under his nose, Alphonse towering over him. “I secretly brought what they gave me.”

“Little brother!”

“You really only care about yourself, jeez.” Al said as Ed attacked himself to his leg in grateful tears, “Sorry, Cliona. I could only get one but you and brother can share I’m sure.”

_No, that’s okay, I already ate._ She shook her head and patted her belly for emphasis on what she was trying to get across. The blond had just raised the sandwich to his mouth when Alphonse had decided to tell him about the corrupt officials that ran coal mine town, as well as the reason why the people weren’t able to get enough food to feed their families.

“I see,” He glared into the mug of coffee, “and thanks to that first lieutenant Yoki, we were treated pretty badly. Everybody hates the army……we’ve never been treated this badly.”

Cliona cocked her head, giving her undivided attention to golden haired boy that seemed to be showing just how much he had aged in the last two years.

“When I decided to become a national alchemist, I was prepared for a little criticism, but…..to be hated this much…..” A sad yet accepting smile graced his face.

“Maybe I should try to get a national alchemist license.”

“Quit it! No way,” Ed laughed, “It’ll be enough for me to sit on this bed of thorns by myself! To go so low as to be a dog of the army, huh? I don’t have anything to say to that though.”

Side-eyeing the boy, Cliona pursed her lips at his tone of voice. She felt herself slump from the thought of just what the boys had been through. It had been entertaining when she had watched the anime, but now it was a reality. The thought of children going through something so traumatic didn’t settle well with her.

“Plus, we ignored the ban and got these bodies…..” Al said, staring off into the distance blankly, “What would teacher say…..”

All at once the brothers froze up, and started shaking in fear, “We’d be killed!” Hands on his head, Al rocked himself slightly. Cliona spotted a trio of what seemed to be military men walking up the short staircase to the bar.

“Out of the way!”

She flinched at the aggression in the voice, and against what Ed was telling her she launched up and towards the door to see what was going on.

“Such a dirty store, as usual, Hulling.” The man at the front complained, dabbing a hanky underneath his nose. He was shouldered by two brutish looking men, one rounded, and the other bulky.

“It’s you, First Lieutenant. Welcome to this filthy place.” Kayal’s father replied, completely used to the way he was spoken to.

“Nice greeting,” A shark smile, “It seems that this place isn’t paying its taxes. This does not stop at you. I could say the same of everyone in this town.”

“I apologise. I can’t do anything about our pay being low.”  He placed his hands on his hips, subconsciously making himself look more threatening.

“Hmph,” The Lieutenant began walking towards the table of men playing a card game, “And yet, there is more than enough to just enjoy alcohol?” His mouth twitched, “Which means, it would be acceptable if I lowered your income a little?”

Cliona couldn’t hear much over the sudden roar that took over the crowd, but she _did_ see Kayal throw a dish cloth at the Lieutenant and be backhanded for it. She ran forward, skidding to a halt beside the child as a sword was drawn.

“This is a warning, kid.”

The sound of metal crashing didn’t distract Cliona, already knowing Ed had followed her and was the reason the sword hadn’t come down onto them. She grabbed the younger boy’s arm and tried to pull him away from his position. Shards of polished steel fell to the ground, prompting her to push the boy instead into a standing position.

“What the!? Who is this ruffian!?” The First Lieutenant yelled, glaring at the broken sword currently being held by chubby.

Cliona managed to get Kayal to his father, before to turning to rejoin Ed.

“A passerby ruffian.”

“This has nothing to do with you! Stay out of this!”

“Nah, I saw the First Lieutenant, so I figured……” He fished out his pocketwatch and flashed it, “Why not say hi?” The man bent down to examine the seal on it, growing paler by the second as he recognised it.

“First Lieutenant, who’s that kid?”

“You moron!”

“Ow!”

Bulky and the man put their heads together to have a whispered conversation, the word ‘pipsqueak’ not being quiet enough as Ed twitched. He was about to go off, when Cliona threaded her arm around his and tugged to distract him. His gold eyes slid over the men like water and zeroed in on the way she clung to his automail. Nodding in understanding, he gave a silent thank you.

“I apologise for my subordinate. I am Yoki, the governor of this town.” The First Lieutenant finally said, sliding over like an eel to Ed, “It must be some sort of fate that we met like this. Don’t stay in this filthy place! This might be a town in the country, but we have the perfect lodgings!”

“Then I’ll let you take care of things, ‘cause this old man wouldn’t let me stay here because he’s _stingy_.” His smile was a forced brightness, and completely won over the audience. A hand was laid on Ed’s shoulder, guiding him out of the building with Cliona still on his arm.

“Do you understand? The taxes will definitely be paid! I’ll be back!”  
The door closed, but not before she heard the last of the conversation inside.   
“What a pain in the ass!”

“Which one?” Al asked.

“Both!”


	4. A Stone Coal Deal

The First Lieutenant's home was grand, and was definitely built using the tax money he squeezed out of the people he was supposed to look after. Cliona shifted uncomfortably in her chair that was placed right beside Ed, who she hadn't released from her grip since they entered the manor. Her nerves were on edge as maids swooped down on her and attempted to drag her from the Alchemist and get her to change into something 'more appropriate' for dinner with their master. The look she was being casted by him wasn't soothing her either.

"Don't hold back, please eat."

Ed frowned as he cut into his food, "I'm eating good stuff…..even when the town is like that."

"It is embarrassing to talk about, but I'm having difficulty collecting taxes."

Cliona would have rolled her eyes and sneered if it wasn't for the fact the First Lieutenant seemed to be doing his hardest to catch her gaze. Directing her attention back to the blond beside her, she clutched his coat tighter, her knuckles turning white. Making it clear she wasn't about to look up any time soon, he continued to speak.

"In addition, there are many ruffians, like the ones earlier," He laughed, "Yes it really is quite embarrassing."

"So, they insist they have rights, whilst not paying their taxes." Ed's voice was cold and collected as he elegantly ate another slither of his steak. Cliona knew that this wasn't in his character, and if she were being truthful if she hadn't known him so well already she would probably have shoved his face into the mashed potatoes on his plate by now. He was acting like a jerk, and although that would normally have earned him a slap from others, she had simply been by his side dutifully. The alchemist didn't miss the distinct lack of doubt, or worry from her and he sighed out of relief knowing there wouldn't be some long-winded explanation of the reasons behind what he was doing. It was nice knowing somebody had your back regardless.

He didn't need to know the reason she was so placid was because she was inwardly freaking out.

"That is correct, Sir Edward. You're rather smart."

"All logic in the world can be represented by the basis of alchemy," Ed paused, eyeing the girl beside him who looked a shade pale, " _Exact Trade._  Privilege comes with duty, right?"

Cliona was raking through her memories, trying to bring up anything from this particular scene that would help, but so far it was looking through muddy water. Whenever she managed to pinpoint a memory, it slipped away from her fingers and left behind a stinging sensation behind her eyes that increased in pain the longer she held onto the fragment.

"I see, I see. Yes, wonderful." The First Lieutenant said, reaching for a silver bell that seemed to appear out of nowhere, "I wonder if you will accept this as  _logical._  Sir Edward, because you are a National Alchemist, it is thought that you would have influence with the higher ups. This is merely what I feel but….."

Ed put his chin into the dip his fingers created as he leaned his elbows onto the table, "This is the so-called  _bribe,_ huh?"

"I do not want to spend the rest of my life as a petty official of a hike town like this, you understand, don't you?"

They didn't stay in the dining room for much longer after that, having been told to rest and think about the man's offer. Two guards, as well as maids had come to retrieve them from the First Lieutenant who simply wished them to sleep well. Cliona was escorted to a separate room from Edward, and that was something that stoked a bit of fear into her. The women on either side of her led her to a door that was on the opposite door of the one Ed went into.

"These are rather curious clothes, Miss."

"And they're rather  _dirty,_ as well."

She looked down at the pyjamas, and felt a surge of worry as she guessed what they were hinting at. She wasn't comfortable in taking off the only piece of home she had left, and for the most part, wearing something from the corrupt Lieutenant wasn't good for her conscious.

As it turned out, her opinion was invalid as they rapidly dragged the soft material covering her and rather ungracefully pushed her into the bathroom that was added onto her bedroom. The bath was already filled with warm water and for the first time since arriving in Amestris she could feel just how much mud and dirt was coating her.

The maids hadn't done much after that, placing an outfit along with a towel for her to dry off at the foot of her bed. Soaking deeper into the tub, she grimaced at the shade of light brown the water turned. There was a gentle hum in her head, comforting her as she drew her legs to her chest. The trio had been constantly on the move since Liore, and didn't stop much besides sleeping and eating. This was a moment of peace, and with it came the loud impending thoughts of just where she was as well as blurred images of faces. Pushing them away as best as she could with a few silent tears, she grabbed the soap and did her best to clean.

Cliona had fumbled with the dress left out for her at first, not understanding exactly how she was supposed to operate the thin material with the number of random straps it had. Eventually she had settled on relying on luck, pulling on her newly washed underwear and pushing her hands through the sleeves. She only managed to get her head through the hole when the clear and  _loud_ noise of her door bursting open stopped her.

"Cliona, we need to- Sorry!"

The door shut rapidly then, and a rhythmical thumping of something against the wall next to it resonated within the room. The stunned girl would have blushed, if it weren't for the need to laugh ripping through her at the instant squeal he had let out before apologising. Giggling, she pulled the dress down the rest of the way and slipped on the pair of leather boots she had gotten from Ed after Liore. She opened the door slightly and had to slap a hand over her mouth to stop herself from grinning too widely.

The blond alchemist had taken up residence further along the corridor, crouching and holding his head in his hands as he rocked slightly in embarrassment. Stepping out of the room she approached the boy and patted his head. Golden eyes shot up to meet hers. He squealed, falling backwards which made any chance of being calm fly out of the window for Cliona who effectively dropped to the ground from laughter.

"I'm so sorry! I didn't – I mean – I knocked!" He stuttered, cheeks flushed a bright red, "I swear I wouldn't have – I didn't have – It was…"

Cliona flapped her hand at him, silently telling him to stop talking as tears of mirth were present in her eyes that just stared at him floundering.

* * *

 

"This is horrible." Cliona heard somebody say from behind her, eyes wide as she stared at the charred building. There was nothing left, besides the first few centimetres of the tavern and even then, it was black from the fire. Her hand latched onto Ed's sleeve as she realised just how much these people were under a dictatorship.

"Last night, Yoki's men were hanging around Boss's shop, I saw it."

Kayal sat a bit away from his parents, already accompanied by Alphonse. She tugged the Alchemist slightly and dragged him towards the pair only able to stumble upon the latter half of the conversation.

"The reason dad did alchemy was because he wanted to save this town," He spoke softly, eyes trained at his dusty feet in defeat. Cliona felt her heart ache a bit for the boy, a flare of hatred towards the First Lieutenant rearing its head within her.

She spotted the way Kayal's eyes found Ed and by how much the pupil dilated with hopelessness, "Hey Ed. You have enough power to transmute gold, don't you? Transmute in a jiff and save dad and the town."

The pity she had felt previously was smudged, becoming more unnerved by the blatant command being sent the blonde's way. They had thrown them out the previous day, refused to feed them, and now wanted their help despite it all? There hadn't even been a miniscule form of an apology, just a demand. It wouldn't even do much to save them at all, knowing the jackass mayor. Sharply, she turned her gaze to the boy and gave a scornful purse of her lips.

"No."

Cliona knew that would happen, he saw the flaw in the idea as well. Kayal hadn't been expecting that as an answer, it seemed.

"No way…. Isn't it okay? You won't lose anything either!"

"The alchemic standard is  _exact trade._ I don't have any responsibility or obligation to make money for you."

"Why you," He got to his feet and went to grab Ed by his coat, "And you're supposed to be an alchemist!"

"Alchemists live for the sake of the people, eh?"

Cliona shivered at the lack of empathy in his voice, plucking the shaking hand that was wrapped up in the material of his coat and shaking her head. It wasn't that she didn't want to help them, it was just the fact that you couldn't be cruel to somebody the day before and expect them to suddenly want to transmute gold. The toll for it would take much more than whatever Kayal was planning to give.  _If_ he had planned to give anything at all.

"In any case. Even if I give you money, it will all be taken away as taxes and then it'll all be over," Ed turned away from him, "I won't get anything either if I do anything for your little problems. If it's that bad living here, move out of this town and look for jobs elsewhere." He pulled the sides of his coat closer.

"Kid, you don't get it." Came the voice of Kayal's dad, "This is our home, and our coffin."

_Okay, that's a bit morbid and excessive._ Cliona's lips had twitched to a concerned expression, however fleeting as she spotted the boy crying heavily with his father's hand on his head. Her shoulders which had been tense, sank at the sight. She cocked her head, wondering what it was like to be pat on the head by a paternal figure. She couldn't quite remember.

Her thoughts were disturbed, and swiftly broken as Alphonse raced past her, "Brother, wait!" Turning she sped in the same direction, seeing Ed already a good few feet ahead of her. Blowing her bangs, she ran at the armours heels until they caught up.

The two stopped abruptly, making Cliona bang her nose of the heated metal in front of her. She squealed silently, her hand brought up to massage the tender spot with a sour glare.

"Are you really going to leave all those people al-"

"Al," It was a commanding tone, "How much do you think this pile of sludge weighs?"

The younger Elric looked at his suspiciously, "Around one…..or two tons?"

Cliona looked on as the blond pulled himself up and into one of the mining wheelbarrows, "I'm gonna break the law a little so pretend you're not watching, okay? You too." He pointed at the girl currently staring up at him with an amused stare. Grinning he saluted her.

"Huh!?" The suit of armour stepped forward, "….so are you telling me to be an accomplice?"

"What? Don't want to? What about you, Pink?"

She grinned at the nickname, preferring it to the others he had thrown at her, and nodded vigorously.

"If I said no you would still do it though…." Alphonse trailed off, a lightly scolding tone seeping through no matter how much he had been trying to keep it from coming out.

There was a clap, and Ed's hands slammed on the mountain of mud, "Whaaaat? If nobody finds out it's okay!" Cliona was reminded of the little conversation the brothers had shared the previous day when the option of transmuting gold had been brought up to pay for their rooms.

"Oh well, I just have to put up with such a bad brother."

The girl was standing just behind the two alchemists an hour later, hiding from the First Lieutenant and his goons. Her arms were sore from the amount of carrying they had had to do to get all the gold bars into the man's home and into the dining room. The maids were there as well, and despite herself she gave a small wave which was returned with a waggle of fingers and a smile. There really was an excessive amount of the faux-gold, she mused.

"Excuse me…"

"I  _said,_ I would like you to sell me the deed to the coal mines." The authority in Ed's short speech made her flush and suppress a girlish grin.

"Incredible…."

"They're all  _real?"_ The goon asked her, which she nodded.

Ed pretended to be confused, "Not enough?"

"No! No! Don't be absurd!" The man swatted his hands around, "With just this I can say goodbye to this town." An aura of sparkles seemed to surround him, "And then…"

"Yes, I'll be sure to inform my friends higher up about the First Lieutenant."

Cliona would have knocked him for the obnoxious and rather pompous tone he put on, but at the moment she was more interested in saving this town.

"Sir Alchemist!" He cried with joy.

"But gold transmutation is illegal so… I would appreciate it if you would write a memorandum stating, 'This deed was transferred free of charge, amicably' so that nobody will find out."

"I don't mind! Let's skip to the  _legal_ part, then shall we? But Sir Alchemist you are  _quite_  evil!"

The two drew closer together, leaning towards the other with an air of both praise and enthusiasm. If Cliona didn't know any better she would have sworn they were giggling.

Nope, they were  _actually_ giggling.

"Oh no, no, just as much as the First Lieutenant." Ed compliment humbly. The exchange went well after that, having signed a deed with both of their names as well as making Alphonse and a maid sign theirs as witnesses.

* * *

 

Cliona cradled her notebook to her chest, glancing over the symbols as she careful wrote the correct ones:  **You did well**. Tugging at Ed, he turned to face her as they approached the tavern that had stood opposite the previous one. They had obviously moved their business into one of their friend's homes.

"Really?" He gloated, his nose seemingly growing slightly in size as he smirked, "I always thought I could be an actor."

"Not now brother," Alphonse scolded paternally, "You've boasted his ego, Cliona." He gave her an accusing glance although it was filled with amusement, and a softness she could only associate with the tween.

Jumping up the stairs to the building, she didn't seem to give him her advice on being subtler about the whole thing before he threw open the door.  
" _Hiiiii everybody_! All people who owe money, line up and be  _very_ happy!"

Cliona groaned as she put her head in her hands. The silence from inside only further proved her thoughts that they wouldn't take too kindly to his sudden entrance.

"Why did  _you_ come here?"

She walked to stand beside Ed and scowled at Kayal who crossed his arms. This kid was switching between hot and cold for her.

"Hey, hey. You wouldn't say those kinds of things and drive off the owner of this place, now would you?" This time Cliona did whack him on the back of the head for the tone. He winced at the impact, and rubbed the place she hit, "Ow! What was that for!?"

"What the hell are you-!?"

She visibly flinched and went behind Al as the rather tall and scary man invaded her personal space. The State Alchemist unrolled the contract from his pocket and held it in front of the angry man.

"….this is….."

"Mining, management and all that good stuff, this is the deed for all businesses."

"Why're you holding thi – No way! The signature says Edward Elric!"

" _WHAT!?"_

"Right!" The blond dramatically posed so that he could show off, "In short, this entire mine is currently mine!"

The collective stunned gazes of the others made Cliona laugh, the visible ' _no way'_ in the air felt like the perfect comic-relief. Al seemed to have placed a finger to his forehead in embarrassment. Ed put a hand on her shoulder, although he had to tilt up slightly to do it as she was an inch or two taller. He gave a nonchalant gesture to his audience.

"It's as I've said, we're the wandering sort that go from journey to journey. Something like this would just be a nuisance."

"Are you saying you're going to sell that to us?" Kayal's father spoke up, his eyes narrowed in hope yet clouded with a bit of suspicion, "How much?"

Ed's grin got wider, "It's expensive." He flapped it around, "If you want to get something, you gotta pay the price. This is vellum embossed in gold, and the storage box is finely engraved in jade. The true mark of an artist. Oh! And the key is silver."

The looks from the men surrounding them showed just how lost they were to what he was saying. The alchemist noticed, but continued anyway, "Well, to the untrained eye, all of this lumped together…. equals the price of one night and three meals at the boss's place. Is this reasonable?"

**Ed is both nice and a jerk.** Alphonse read from over her shoulder as she thrust it towards him, making him laugh quietly. She flipped the page as she saw the person in question glance over at them. Laughter spouted from Kayal's dad.

"Yes, yes that  _is_ expensive! All right. Bought!"

"Sold!"

The deed was slammed on the table between them just as the door burst open, "Sir Alchemist! What is the meaning of this?!"

"Well if it isn't the First Lieutenant, I just sold the deed to this man." He greeted with a childlike ignorance. Cliona shook her head with a smile.

"What did you say!?" He looked horrified, "No. More importantly! The gold bricks you gave me all turned to stone! Why did this happen? Please explain!"

Alphonse bent down so he could whisper in his brother's ear, "When did you turn it back?"

"Just before we left." He smirked, "I don't know anything about gold bricks." He cheerfully spoke.

_Oh, Ed. You smug bastard._ Cliona crossed her legs as she sat down, enjoying the scene that was playing out in front of her.

"Don't play innocent with me! Didn't I trade the deed for a mountain of gold!? This is fraud!"

"Eh? I received the certificate free of charge, but… oh look there's a memorandum."

The First Lieutenant growled. "This transaction is invalid! Get the deed!" He howled to his henchmen on either side of him. A looming shadow of the growing group of angry miners was cast onto the trio.  
"You shouldn't take our private property through force. Is this abuse of authority?"

"S-Silence! Out of the way! If you don't want to get hurt, hurry up and…"

The crowd had grown now, all filled with men who had spotted the golden moment for revenge for the past years, "Not taking coal-miner power seriously is a big no-no, First Lieutenant."

Cliona cheered silently from her seat, pumping her fists into the air as she watched the goons be K.O'd with one punch, sending them flying into the ground unconscious.

"Ah! I forgot," Ed spoke as if he was offering someone tea, "First Lieutenant? I'll be sure to inform the higher ups about your incompetence," He held up a hand sweetly, "Please take care of it from here."

"All right!"

"Bring the bear! The bear!"

The men rushed him then, all with pints of larger and ale in their hands and trying their hardest to make him drink. Cliona spotted Kayal from the corner of her eye and decided to excuse him for the past two days as a look of admiration had covered his face as he stared at Ed. It disappeared however after said adored person passed out on the ground from eating so much with the rest of the men.

"You fell asleep with your stomach exposed again, you're  _so_ embarrassing, brother!"


	5. Train Wrecked

The train ride had been fairly pleasant, Cliona thought gazing out of the window at the passing countryside that had shifted from the dry-looking scenery that surrounded the mine. They had been in the same seats for nearly two days by now, and she honestly was about to start drawing on Ed's face if he didn't stop snoring. He nearly took up the entire bench, his feet unceremoniously thrown into her lap much to her distaste. Alphonse had been trying to teach her more of their alphabet during the ride, and thankfully she could now write nearly all the letters off by heart.

Of course, this had all been  _before_ the train was hijacked.

Cliona shifted uncomfortably in her seat, the atmosphere of fear was clear. It riddled the air in all the booths besides theirs. If she were being totally truthful, she felt more annoyed than anything. There was a lump of useless flesh using her as a footrest, and now a man pointing a gun at her.

"Listen missy, if you just do as you're told we won't hurt you alright?" He grinned, "Shame to hurt such a pretty thing."

Her features twisted into something close to an animalistic snarl at that, eyes staring down the man. She would have pulled a rather offensive hand gesture if it weren't for the sudden shift in attention to the blond beside her.

"You can sleep pretty well in a situation like this, kid." He propped his gun against his shoulder, "Hey." He pocked Ed with it "Hey, wake up! Why don't you act a little bit more like a  _hostage,_ you SHRIMP!"

_Of **course** , that wakes him up._

Cliona felt the feet slung across her remove themselves at a lighting pace, a murderous aura being emitted from their owner as he placed a hand next to her head to balance himself as he got up.

"Oh? You got any complaints?!" The man shouted, sticking the gun's barrel directly into Ed's face. There was a clap, and his hands were then on either side of the weapon seconds before it was transmuted into a shoddy looking trumpet, "Huh!? What the hell!?"

The pearl blonde girl mutely cheered the State Alchemist on as he booted the man in the face hard enough to knock him out. A sigh come from Alphonse who had resumed the much-needed pose of exasperation with his brother's antics.

A click of a gun alerted the trio to another person, "Not bad, punk. We're told not to give any mercy to anyone that resists us. I don't feel right about shooting a shrimp like you, but…."

The suit of armour was already in-between the two, grabbing the gun and pointing it in a completely different direction to Ed, "Now, now, calm down you two."

"What!? You want to put up a fight –" Before he could finish, the blond had jumped and need him in the face, "- too?"

"WHO THE HELL IS A FLEA SIZED ULTRA SHRIMP!"

Cliona shook her head as she decided going over to Alphonse would be safer than being in direct contact with the one-sided brawl, consisting of Ed simply attacking the man.

"Brother! He'll die if you do any more than that."

**You don't sound too worried.**

Al laughed at her comment, although it was sheepish meaning she wasn't too off the mark. Grinning, she turned her attention to the boy who held the recently-unconscious gunman by his shirt. He stared blankly at him, and promptly turned to face the suit of armour, "Anyway, who are these guys?"

"So, it was only a subconscious reaction from heading 'shrimp'…." Disappointment laced his sentence and Cliona grinned to herself. The brothers had tied the two men up by the time the first man had woken up to be questioned.

"Other than us, there are two in the engine room, four holding the general in the first-class car, and four of us are guarding the hostages spread throughout the passenger cars." He had talked easily, not too keen on receiving another beating from the short boy who just held out his fist threateningly.

"And?"

"Really, that's it! Really!"

The voices of the other passengers were worried as they spoke about the remaining ten, as well as the fact there might be a retaliation for the men Ed had beaten up.

"If certain  _somebody_  had acted calmly, this would probably have ended peacefully, right?" Alphonse was quick to instigate his brother.

"We can't move on if we only regret the past, little brother!"

The unconvinced facial expression on Cliona must have struck a chord as he muttered out a quiet 'shut up' and blushed from his hastiness. She didn't really mind the fact this wouldn't be ended nicely, quite the opposite really, she was glad the men had been beaten up. The first one had given her the creeps that sent shivers up her spine.

"Can't be helped. I'll take the top. Al, Li, you two handle things down under, okay?"

"Okay, okay."

Cliona blinked as she realised her nickname had been changed  _again._ Ed and Al grasped each other's wrists for better support as the former leaned out of the window to prepare for launching up to the top.

"Just who are you people?"

"Us? We're alchemists." Ed replied proudly, leaning back and ruining the moment by yelling, "The wind pressure! The wind pressure!" As he was swept away. If it weren't for Al he would have gone flying. There was a  _bang_ on the roof of the carriage that was the blond who began moving forward.

"Shall we go?" Al asked politely, receiving a firm nod. The duo crossed through to the next carriage without much trouble, not a single passenger was inside which meant they had all most likely been sent to the back one for better observation. The suit of armour pressed up against the wall as he heard footsteps and pulled Cliona with him, about to motion to be quiet before remembering, "Er, sorry."

"- to call at the scheduled times…." A guy with a bandana wrapped around his head came into view, and Alphonse stepped in front of him. The cigarette he was smoking dropped to the floor in shock and immediately he went for his gun.

"Wait! Watch out for the rico-…" Al tried to warn, "...-chet. Too late."

Bandana man had accidentally gotten himself shot in the thigh, falling backwards in pain. The sound made Cliona wince as another came to investigate the noise. Once again, they fired after seeing the walking armour and once again, the bullets ricocheted and hit them.

"Are you people idiots?" Alphonse asked innocently, making the girl cackle at the blunt insult he had dished out, albeit unknowingly. Cliona hopped ahead of him, opening the next carriage door to spot more men with guns. Freezing, she gave an awkward wave which they returned before realising she wasn't supposed to be there. One ran to what she supposed was a phone to call their boss.

"Girly, what d'you think you're doin' 'ere?"

Scowling, she stepped to the side and Alphonse quickly stepped from behind her and into the limelight. There was another pause as they assessed the walking armour. The one on the phone was the loudest as the others went for him.

"Help! A huge suit of armour and a girl are making their way up the-" Cliona tied up the three men who had fallen, surprise-surprise, to the unfortunate ricochet. Al was already standing in front of the talker, "-Ah! No!"

Shaking her head she pulled out her notebook and wrote in big, bold letters:  **RI-CO-CHET.**  It was more for the boy's conscious than anything else, he really felt bad about the whole thing. He apologised to them all as the two rounded the gunmen together in the middle of the carriage.

" _Attention all criminals. We have recaptured the engine room and the rear cars. All that is left is this one. Please release the hostages and surrender yourselves."_  Ed's voice came tumbling out of the door to the next carriage that Alphonse quietly opened. She went to stand behind him, all too wary of the fact there would be more flying bullets. Silently, she handed him the page of her notebook and tucked it into the chest piece so that anybody approaching him could see it. He gave an  _'oh!'_ , and stammered a thank you.

" _Failure to do so, and we will have to remove you by force."_

"Fuck off! I don't know who you are, but as long as we have hostages, we can't lose!"

Cliona assumed that was the boss shouting.

" _Oh, dear me. Still full of fighting spirit? Too bad. Negotiations have failed."_ There was a confused pause,  _"All hostages, please hide behind shelter."_

There was a metallic groan, and as Al held the door open, water spilled out and carried men with it as well. They coughed up whatever liquid had made it into their lungs before turning to face the duo.  
"A huge…suit of armour….. girl." Terror was written across their faces.

"Not yet! I still have my trump hostage….!" The boss cried, Cliona noted he was wearing an eyepatch and hadn't shaved in a week or two. He brandished his arm, revealing automail. She heard footsteps above the carriage and smiled as Ed fell into theirs, cocky as ever.

"Oh? Another user?" He flashed a maniacal grin as he transmuted his arm into a long spike.

"Thi-This  _PUNK!"_ He charged forward, and went to fire using his machine-gun for an arm just as the boy stabbed it from below, his automail going clean through and cutting it like butter

"What? You're using some cheap goods."

Cliona had to take a step back as she felt a blush rise at the sight of Ed. There was a fighting ferocity in his eyes that made her forget to breath for a moment. An armour hand clamped around the man's shoulder, and Al abruptly swung his other one around to bash him in the head. He fell to the ground, and Ed clapped his hands together to form a cage that they later put all of the men in.

"Huh? What's that shoved into your chest piece? Rico…..Rico _…._ I honestly can't read that."

"Um, brother…."

"Seriously, Al, did you write this with your left hand? It looks like some kid's writing."

Cliona felt herself prickle at the comment, and before she could stop herself she hurled her pen at the blond and started to hit him with her notebook.

The train arrived at the station a couple of hours afterwards, Cliona happily rocking on the balls of her feet in excitement to finally get off. Alphonse helped her get up and began a one-sided conversation as they walked together, a lightly bruised Ed trailing behind.

"You're just like  _Winry,_ jeez." He muttered, reaching up to touch a particularly sensitive bump on his head. Cliona stuck her chin up and ignored him. They had only just landed on the platform when a familiar figure cut across to stand just in front of their group. She cocked her head, taking in his uniform and the woman beside him before grinning slightly as she recognised them.

"Fullmetal."

"Oh! It's the Colonel!" Al chipped in, lightening the mood.  
"Why does that face look so unhappy?" Mustang asked with a deadpan look as he saw the hateful expression directed his way.

"I should have stayed out of the colonel's jurisdiction!"

"As cold as usual," He sighed, smirking a bit, "And you still haven't restored yourselves."

"We searched books and the like, but we didn't get anything…. We're going to search through East City now, but we haven't found a good way of doing things yet."

"I've heard rumours. It seems you've done quite a bit here and there."

There was a yell from somewhere behind them. Cliona moved to stand beside the woman who had introduced herself during the boys' emotional reunion. Riza was nice, she had gathered, nicer than the anime or manga had portrayed her. There was a certain way about her that just screamed maternal. Her eyes flittered to the source of the noise, and went wide as she saw the two men on the ground bleeding whilst the eye-patch guy from before stood panting with blood dripping from his automail. Ed groaned.

"Colonel. Please stay back." Hawkeye spoke softly, bringing up her pistol to level it at the approaching man. She was stopped from doing much when Mustang put his arm out in front of her.  
"This should be fine."

He clicked his fingers and there was an explosion. A wave of heat passed through them, and Cliona fought with her dress to keep it down from the gusts of wind. Eyepatch was thrown backwards and to the feet of three other officials.

"I went easy on you. If you're going to resist again, I'll turn you into cinders, got it?"

" _Fucker,_ what the hell are you?"

"Roy Mustang. Rank, Colonel. And one more thing," He went to adjust his collar, "I'm the Flame Alchemist. Please remember that."

The Colonel's office was more spacious than she thought possible. Cliona sat in the lush couch across from the Elric Brothers, curiously observing every inch she could. The brief conversation had started some time ago, and judging by the shit-eating grin on Ed's face, she was sure it had gone in his favour.

"You owe me one for this, right Colonel?" He leered.

"There's something disturbing about having to be in your debt…." Mustang admitted, swinging around in his chair so he could lean against an elbow on his desk, "I'll cave in. What do you want?"

"That's our Colonel. You're quick." The blond laughed, "We want you to show up to a library or introduce us to an alchemist that knows about biological transmutation around here."

"Right now? Good grief man, you're impatient."

"We want to get our body's back as soon as possible!"

Cliona had long since been told about the whole Human Transmutation thing regarding the brothers, although it had more been an accident in Liore when they were forced to reveal more than they wanted to. The sudden gaze of the three males were locked on her face just then, studying her reaction to the topic being brought up. She blinked owlishly at them, before gesturing for them to  _go on._

"I see she was let in on your secret then." Mustang mused as he went through the bookshelf to the left of the office, "Surprising."

"Well, it wasn't so much  _told_  as more….." Ed looked at her, "Right place, right time?"

She shrugged at his slap-stick explanation.

"It has been a while since we last met. Let's chat over a cup of tea."

"And what would the fun in drinking tea with a guy be!?" Ed exclaimed.

"I wasn't talking to  _you,_ Fullmetal. I was talking to the lovely lady beside you."

Cliona pursed her lips out of habit as a laugh bubbled up her throat at the scandalised look the Brothers were throwing their Colonel, "You can't just assume everyone wants to go on a date with you, womanizer!"

"She isn't saying no, now is she?"

"That's because she can't  _talk!"_

Mustang stopped flicking through the files at that, "Oh? How is she travelling with you then? I doubt you just picked her up."

"She isn't a resident of Amestris yet, she crossed the border from another country so we thought bringing her here would be the best thing." Alphonse spoke up. Cliona knew where this was going, and picked up her notebook that was lying on the coffee table between them. She flipped to an open page and began sketching.

"So, she's an illegal immigrant?"

"Pretty much, yeah. Her name's Cliona. We want you to register her and get her legal entrance." Ed finalised, wondering what the girl was ignoring them for. Her pen was just racking over the page repeatedly, occasionally flourishing, and from what he knew about her chicken-scratches for handwriting it was possible she was just writing something.

"I suppose that's also what you want to repay the favour?" Roy's smirk was undetectable as noticed how protective the two had become over the strange girl. She didn't look like she was from any of the neighbouring countries, as far as he could tell. Her hair was too pale, and an odd shade that didn't match Xing or Aerugo. The fairness of her skin could have meant she was from somewhere north of Drachma, although her overall height was too short for that. Silver eyes met his, shocking him for a moment at the clearness. A war-torn region was out of the question then, officially scrapping any other country.

Mustang walked towards his desk, a folder in his hands that he threw to the desk as he rummaged through a drawer to pull out a yellow piece of paper and a black pen, "She'll need to sign these and give us all relevant information."

Cliona stood up and went to get it, and grimaced as she realised some of the symbols were more complicated than the ones Al and Ed had taught her. The younger brother seemed to realise her distress more than the older one, as he went up beside her to read them aloud. She filled out most of them, although when it came to things like her place of birth as well as country of origin she left it blank. That earned her a few confused glances.

"It isn't optional, you have to answer those." Mustang informed her sternly, his forehead creased as he wondered why she would refuse to answer them in the first place. Cliona shook her head, handing him the page as well as the pen back. She wrote in her notebook.

**No. Not allowed.**

"Not allowed?" Alphonse read, muttering it.

"Oh, is that what it says?"

"Brother, stop being mean."

"Wha-! I'm not!"

She rose the bundle of pages above her head threateningly, tempted to start whacking him again. She wasn't really bugged about how horribly she wrote, she hadn't been here long enough to accurately write the symbols properly. She would get better with time.

"I assure you. I wouldn't be asking for it if it wasn't vital. The State can't just allow random citizens in without knowing where they come from." Mustang pushed the paper back into her hands, making her frown, "Either you answer the questions, or I will be forced to deport you."

Glaring, Cliona snatched the pen back from the dark-haired man and positioned it on the dotted line. She chewed on the inside of her lip before scribbling down in her own alphabet so they wouldn't be able to read it.

_Ireland._

Realising the girl had found a loophole, Mustang just grumbled that it was technically allowed and took the page away from her, "Now, what are you going to do now? Since you're a minor the same rules won't apply to you, meaning you can technically just leave." He stamped the back of the yellow page, folded it and slipped it into a bundle on his desk.

Cliona just grabbed Ed's sleeve as a response.

"Wait, you want to stay with  _us?"_

Smiling, she nodded and twirled her blue pen around her free fingers. There was a meeting of stares between the brothers, a silent debate raging.

"But  _why?"_

**I want to help.**

"You don't owe us anything though, I promise. We were just doing our jobs." Ed stuttered, disbelief evident on his face.

**I have to help. **She underlined the verb to help get across her point. It wouldn't matter if she wanted to do much anyway in the end. She wasn't given the choice.

"You  _have_ to? We aren't forcing you…." Alphonse sounded worried, putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Why do you  _have_ to help?" Mustang asked, catching the ominous edge to her sentence. He seemed to be the only one asking the right questions. There was something she wanted to say, judging by the way she was squirming under their eyes. She bit the end of her pen.

Cliona wanted to lie, really, she did, but there was a form of domino effect that would happen after that. One lie would turn into two, and then snowball. She wouldn't be able to keep up with them, and if the Elrics found out there wasn't much she could do if they decided to leave her behind.

With a shaking hand, she tried to write the word. It was messy and a bit rough at parts but it looked close enough. She turned her notebook around to show them.

**Truth.**


	6. A Lesson in Humility

There was a pregnant pause as the word she flourished to the males in front of her sank in. Her toes were pointed inwards, showing just how uncomfortable, as well as anxious of their reactions she was. Cliona wasn't stupid enough to think that they would take the whole thing like it was just a minor bump in the road. Oh no, she expected an explosion of expressions as well as a few curse words from a specific blond alchemist, or for him to become a few shades paler, and momentarily lose the ability to speak. Her eyes were shut tight, afraid of their general reactions. They made no sounds, in fact she was would have said the atmosphere was almost awkward.

"Trust? You trust us?"

Snapping her eyes open, she flushed at the thought that she hadn't written the word correctly. Molten gold locked onto her in shock. Cliona flipped her notebook around and stared in frozen horror at what she saw. The symbols were crisper than she could have done, a flourish to the vowels in particular that would have made her jealous if it weren't for the situation. Her pen was a royal blue. This was written in a rich black. The girl knew there was only one reason the word had been changed, and she didn't like the maniacal smile that appeared at the front of her mind.

Drawing her stationary closer to her chest, she swallowed around the lump that had built itself in her throat from fear. Cliona could only guess that revealing her involvement with the Truth was forbidden, another unfair rule they must have agreed upon that was locked away in a memory she couldn't access. So, putting on a smile, she shakily nodded at the questioning and vulnerable looks on the brothers' faces. The guilt that settled in her gut at that winded her.

"Are you sure?" Alphonse asked, stepping forward so he was in line with his stiff sibling that hadn't stopped gawking at the girl, "You really want to help us? For nothing?"

Miserably, Cliona went to reply with a half-lie when Ed placed a hand over hers that was fumbling with her pen. He glanced down at it and she swore the furrowing of his eyebrows was due to the fact the colour of the writing she had shown them was different to the pen. If he did notice it, he didn't comment.

"You owe us nothing, you know that right?" He finally spoke, sounding solemn.

**You saved me, now I want to save you. Equivalent Exchange.**

The blond snorted, a grin worming its way back onto his face, but nodded at her answer. She knew it was spelled terribly, and probably was read differently out loud but for now, Ed had seemed to understand the squiggly lines.

"It sounds like you aren't giving us a choice here."

**No, I'm really not.**

Their challenging stares clashed, equal in intensity as well as stubbornness, although underneath it all there was a tinge of amusement on either end. Finally, the moment broke as Ed turned to Mustang with his arms folded, a smirk taking up his previous expression.

"So where are you sending us, Colonel?"

A low, and unmistakeably manly chuckle from the man in question brought her attention to him as well, "There's a researcher of chimera transmutation living within the city. His name is Shou Tucker, the Life Binding Alchemist."

For some reason the name bothered Cliona, but she didn't let it show as she nodded to let them know she was paying attention the man, "He successfully transmuted a talking chimera and obtained a license to be a National Alchemist."

"A talking…...You mean it can  _talk_ like humans do? A chimera?"

"That seems to be the case. I wasn't in charge at that time, so I didn't see the actual thing. I heard it could learn what people would say and speak," Roy's previously stoic look melted away, "However, it only said one thing.  ** _I want to die._**  Afterwards, it wouldn't eat anything and got its wish."

Cliona felt horrified, her hand going to press against her mouth from the wave of sympathy that fell upon her. Edward glanced her way as he saw her disturbed figure shake slightly. His fingers wrapped themselves around her forearm and squeezed. The effect was immediate, her eyes meeting his and giving a shaky smile - a silent thanks.

The drive towards the Tucker house was longer than Cliona had originally suspected, getting out only twenty minutes later. The car was cute though, in her opinion. It was black, small, and seemed to belong straight out of a vintage movie. She leaned against it whilst Mustang and the Elrics decided to go up to the front door. There was something she disliked about this place already, it gave her a hot and squirming feeling in her gut whenever she tried to cross into the grounds.

Ed had given her an odd look when she had launched back towards the vehicle as if she had been burnt, but after trying to pull her along and earning a few bruises on his shins he had given up. He sent her a withering look that edged away some of the growing anxiety within. The fair-haired girl could already guess that this had something to do with the memory that was slithering beneath the surface in her mind, poking and thrashing around to be noticed.

_Shou Tucker._

The name sent a cold shiver down her spine, accompanied by a rush of heat to spread across her body. Argent eyes focused onto the trio and formed into crescents as she grinned widely as a large dog suddenly pounced on the oldest brother. She could hear his protests as his body dropped to the ground and the slobbers as he was licked.

"Alexander! Stop that!"

The voice was unfamiliar to Cliona. She assessed the man and his daughter standing in the archway of the recently opened door, the latter excitedly bouncing up and down.

"Wow! Lots of guests, Daddy!"

* * *

 

Alphonse was actually the one who managed to bring Cliona into the house, having flung her over his shoulder and marching into the mini mansion with multiple apologises. Mustang had explained that until her presence had been approved by the Fuhrer she was supposed to stay within their sights, in case she was apprehended by other guards. She refused to enter the room together with the men however, instead being escorted to the kitchen by the little girl who she was currently being entertained by. A soft smile had spread across her face from the innocent, childish rambling she was spouting.

"I just don't understand why we can't turn Alexander pink! He's a perfectly good dog, I think he would enjoy the change in look!" Nina yelled, swinging her legs from atop the dining chair that served a small circular table in the white-tiled space. There was a window that overlooked the back garden. Cliona pursed her lips at the pout she was seeing, unable to stop herself from finding the humour in the situation.

"We also aren't allowed to get a fish, Daddy says," She crossed her arms, "They're stinky."

Nodding, the teenager reached into one of the cupboards and pulled out two mugs as well as a teapot. She had already boiled the water and had decided to try make some tea. It had been too long since her last cup. Already she was borderline sinning by not having her doses daily. She dunked the strainer containing the loose leaves into the teapot and brought the rest of the crockery with her to the table where she sat across from the young girl.

"You're really quiet, Big Sister."

Recoiling in shock, Cliona just blinked rapidly as Nina readjusted herself so her legs were tucked underneath her as she leaned forward to grin widely. It wasn't an uncomfortable feeling that she got from the title, but she had never been called that in her life. Tilting her head, she passed the little brunette a biscuit from the tray she had fished out from the drawers with a kind-hearted smile. Nina made a sound of happiness as she began to nibble on the baked good, making her silent for a change.

**Hello Nina, my name is Cliona. I'm mute.**

The eyes took the words in, and a nod was all she got in response before she was thrown into another conversation revolving another one of Nina's favourite animals, and how her father wouldn't let her have one. Cliona almost scoffed at that, disbelieving at how accepting and uncaring children were towards certain things. They had no preconceptions about people, or any time to absorb prejudice towards others so the very blatant and casual manner that her inability to speak had been brushed aside was to be expected.

Fully absorbed in the musings of the young girl, she poured tea into the cups and added multiple spoons of sugar for her as well. Children were more susceptible to sweet things, and like her mother had first introduced her to tea, Cliona made sure to dilute it mainly with milk so it turned a pale tan colour. For herself, she only used a small amount and no sugar.

They had gone through four pots of tea, and two batches of biscuits when Alphonse had appeared at the door and Nina had launched herself at her 'brother.'

**Where's Ed?**

"Oh! He's in the library still reading."

Frowning, Cliona glanced at the nearest clock and saw it had been nearly five hours since they had arrived. She sighed, and gave Al a disapproving stare with a raised eyebrow. The boy immediately shrivelled under the gaze, realising what she was trying to say. Edward had been in that room far longer than he should, regardless of whether he was used to it. The teenage girl strolled towards a pot of tea that was still warm and placed it on a serving dish, along with a clean cup and a few things to eat that were left over from the lunch she had made Nina and herself.

**Let's go.**

The suit of armour nodded and led the way as the young girl rested upon his shoulders giggling. The sound of the main clock chiming away filled the small gaps of silence as Al and Nina spoke to one another. The hallways weren't as dark as Cliona would have suspected, instead were rather well-lit and casted shadows that reached the roof.

The library wasn't too far away, and she immediately went first to spot the blond with his nose still stuck deep in a book. There were two towers on either side of him, and Cliona severely hoped that the one that contained four was the finished pile instead of the other that was made up of seventeen. Ed was sitting cross-legged and didn't seem to notice her until the pages in front of his eyes were ripped away and replaced by the sight of biscuits and tea.

"Wha-Wait what time is it?" He asked, aware of the dip in light from outside that had sunshine streaming through the last time he had checked. Cliona held up five fingers and thrust out a ham sandwich that he instantly grabbed, "No wonder I'm so hungry!"

"Brother, you're always hungry." Al deadpanned, coming to a stop besides Cliona's kneeling form as she began stacking away some of the books so she could pour him something to drink. She grinned as she added the milk first and then filled it the rest of the way with the tea. She wondered if he would be able to realise what he was drinking before it was all gone Ed didn't seem to be paying much attention to anything but the food that rapidly disappeared from the tray.

**Did you find anything useful?**

Gold swiped over her words, "No," He sighed, speaking with his mouth full, "Nothing so far. How about you? What were you doing?"

**Playing with Nina, and making tea.** She passed him the dainty, and rather egg-shell blue teacup and watched evilly as he raised it to his lips and drank it one gulp. He paused, smacking his lips together as the actual taste began to set in. His mouth didn't twist into a grimace like Cliona had assumed, making her frown in dissatisfaction. Ed was about to speak again when he heard the padding of paws a fraction too late as a large dog launched himself onto the boy, crushing him to the floor.

"Hello Alexander!" Nina cried from atop of Al's shoulders, happily laughing at the sight of a defeated Edward who was repeatedly attacked by licks.

"Don't say  _'Hello Alexander'!_ Get him off of me!"

Cliona shook her head amused, a hand already outstretched to begin rubbing the Labrador's exposed belly. She really did like animals, much like Nina did.

"But Alexander wants to play with Brother." The innocent comment sparked something in Ed who was dabbing his face with a handkerchief he had pulled out of his coat pocket.

"Oh, you've got some guts to want to play with me…" The dog kept wagging his tail at the blond boy, "They say lions use up all of their energy trying to catch rabbits." Edward gave the wet material to Cliona who scowled and went to throw it at his back, "I, EDWARD ELRIC, AM GOING AFTER YOU WITH EVERYTHING I'VE GOT, YOU DAMN MUTT!"

* * *

 

The following days, they arrived at the Tucker house around the same time as the first. This particular visit however, Cliona decided to go along with the brothers and was sitting behind Nina. She was braiding the girl's hair, slipping in one of the red ribbons she had already used to pin her hair in pigtails. There was a fondness she held for the little girl, having become like an older sister overnight. Although she hadn't had much choice in it, as Nina had constantly claimed they were now related.

"Two years ago, huh? Your mother…."

"Yeah, Daddy said she went back to her parents." She responded to Al's open-end question, her eyes closed happily as fingers threaded through her hair.

"It must be lonely to be in a big house like this with just your father."

"No! I'm okay. Daddy's nice, and I have Alexander too!" She threw her arms around the dog who had his head in her lap, "But…. it's been lonely lately because Daddy's been cooping himself up in his lab." The blank stare she was giving to her knees was enough to sway Ed from his research as he stood up to stretch.

"Ok, I'm feeling a bit stiff from doing nothing but reading all day." He groaned, reaching his hands upwards to crack his back.

"The remedy for stiffness is exercise, Brother." Alphonse chirped from his spot.

"Yeah, I'll do some in the garden," He grinned and turned to point at the dog who had lifted his head up with enthusiasm at the words, "Hey Mutt! I need exercise so I'll play with you in the garden."

Cliona smacked her forehead at the coarse way Ed sometimes acted. It was endearing but also seemed a tad bit arrogant. He never meant to be rude, she knew that, but sometimes he was just impossible to defend.

"Come on, Nina too." A metal hand was offered to the little girl who looked back at the older one behind her in a silent question. She nodded, securing the French plait with another ribbon and stood up herself, reaching for her pen.

**Tea?**

"Yeah, that would be nice." Alphonse answered her, copied moments later by Ed who had become a fan of the hot drink rather quickly. He was addicted to the brew, and Cliona in return hadn't uttered that the secret ingredient was milk. It seemed that tea wasn't actually a very popular drink in this universe, or at least that the Elric Brothers had never tried it before now. She couldn't help but wonder how the blond would react when he found out about the hidden dairy.

Brushing off her dress, she filtered in the direction of the kitchen alone, walking quickly through the hallways. The ominous feelings she got around the house hadn't gone away since the first time she saw it; however, it was dampened whenever she was around Nina. Ed and Al were also able to quell most of the anxiety she felt, but never to the same extent.

It was like this house was haunted, she mused as she eyed the staircase that led up to where Mr. Tucker’s study was. He was also something that freaked her out, his unnerving stare whenever the state exam came up in conversation. Her shoes made light squeaks as she went back through to the kitchen, moving quickly to the cupboards and bringing out a set of teacups. The whistling of the boiling water filled the silence soon, before drowning itself out as Cliona poured it into the teapot. She dumped a spoonful of honey in as well to sweeten it. Personally, she could drink tea black, but after thinking over whether Nina would be able to handle it she decided against making it without milk.

That afternoon, Cliona and the brothers were at their hotel room before dusk, having grabbed a quick bite to eat before they went about their hunt for dinner. Ed was lying across the coach, head tilted backwards as he groaned, a hand coming up to untie the braid his hair was kept in.

“I’m telling you! That mutt definitely cheats.”

“You’re just sulking because he beat you, brother.”

A smile made its way onto the girl’s face as she watched the scene, vividly recalling how Alexander had managed to pounce on the eldest Elric and force him to the ground. Spotting a smudge of mud on the side of his face, Cliona went to dampen a towel to help him clean up. Leaving the room briefly, she came back to see Alphonse protectively shielding his torso from an animated Edward.

“How did you even find one!?”  
“Please, brother! She won’t take up much room, look at how tiny-”  
“I was with you the entire time!”

Cliona eyes widened as she realised exactly what Al was hiding, and without much thought she threw the wet towel at the blond, hearing a satisfying _slap_ as it hit him across the face. Ed had turned to stone at the sudden attack, turning mechanically so he was facing their amused tagalong.

“Don’t tell me you’re on _his_ side.”

Nodding happily, she skipped passed him and up to the suit of armour, eagerly prying open his chest piece to reveal a ginger tabby cat. She wasn’t very big, probably under a year-old judging by just how slender her body was. Reaching inside, she was delighted to feel the cat let her stroke her without a fight.

**She’s so soft!**

“So is the carpet! No, we can’t keep her. We don’t have the time or the ability to take her around with us.”

Pouting, Cliona stuck her tongue out at the boy who just groaned in mild frustration. She watched as he dumped the damp towel onto the space beside him, completely missing the point of why she got it in the first place. Rolling her eyes, she picked it up and leant over the back of the coach so she was hovering over him.  
“What are you doing?”

Grinning cheekily, she started scrubbing at the mud that had crusted at the side of his face. The pink hue that crawled up Edward’s neck made Al snicker.

* * *

 

The next morning was filled with a strange sense of apprehension from Cliona, her teeth sinking into the flesh of her bottom lip as they made their way down the narrow road that would come to the Tucker Estate. Her fingers were already wrapping themselves in the red material of Ed’s cloak before she could stop herself. It was something she had started doing less frequently since they’d met, knowing that the boys had figured out that it was something she did when she was uncomfortable.

The blond slowed down his stride so he could look back at her, taking in the way the bags under her eyes were angrier than usual. He knew she had trouble sleeping, waking up occasionally with an expression of panic that she would refuse to explain. It had gotten worse over the days they had spent in Central.

“You know you can talk to us if somethings bothering you, right?” He told her, studying the frightened look in her gaze that snapped to meet his, “I’m not about to judge you for it. We’re friends.”

The grip on his cloak tightened momentarily as she dropped her stare to the cobbled sidewalk. Cliona knew something was going to happen, she just couldn’t remember what. It was like there was a charge in the air around them, pulsing and alive yet whenever she tried to reach for one of those memory fragments that were drowning, they would retreat further under the thick sludge that covered them. The feelings she had in the Tucker house were of a scared animal, one begging to find a way out, and there was this sinking realisation that they were justified. Even if her memories were broken, it didn’t mean that subconsciously she couldn’t tell who was bad and who was good.

**I don’t like Mr. Tucker.** She finally wrote, releasing the red material as she held it up so Ed could see.

“What, really? That’s it?” He laughed, stopping short after seeing the hurt expression that flashed across her face, “Wait sorry, I didn’t mean to……I mean, why? He’s been very hospitable to us.”

Cliona bit the end of her pen, debating on how she could answer that. If she was being honest she would have just scribbled about how terrified she was whenever they left her alone in that house. The shadows played with her mind, making sounds when nobody was around. She would have said more if they hadn’t arrived at the gate to the Tucker Estate.

The front door was unlocked when they went to knock, opening almost invitingly. Something felt wrong, making Cliona pale when Ed spoke.

“It looks like it’s about to rain, we should probably go in.”

“Hello? Mr. Tucker?” Alphonse said walking further into the house with his brother trailing close behind, “Come on, Cliona.”

Swallowing around the bile she felt crawling up her throat, she stepped over the threshold and into what would be discovered as the Devil’s Lair.

“No one’s here.”

“Nina?”

“Mr. Tucker?”

Cliona wrapped her arms around herself, making sure she was close enough to the brothers that if anything went wrong she’d at least have them. The Elrics turned to the staircase and made their way up it as she hung behind by a few steps. She had made it to the top when she heard the distinct voice of Shou Tucker.

“Oh, it’s you guys. Come, take a look at the finished product.”

The blonde peeked from behind Al as something crawled from the dark in the study and into the light. It was without a doubt part canine, judging from the shape of the skull and the way it walked on all fours.

“This is a chimaera that can learn language.” Tucker boasted pridefully, turning to display his creation to the trio. Cliona could feel herself shake the closer she got to the creature, guided by Ed who also wanted to get a better look. The chimaera’s fur was long and a distinct shade of brown, one that reminded her of Nina. “Ready? Watch this. This person is Edward.”

“Edward?” It copied back, cocking its head in a familiar motion. There was a little bow tied around a strand of the chimaera’s hair, holding together a half-done plait. It was yellow, with black dots. Cliona felt her heart stop as she recognised it as the one she used to tie Nina’s hair with that morning. Tears were already filling her eyes.

“Good job.”

“Go…od Jo…b.”

“I can’t believe it actually talks.” Edward said, watching curiously as his friend made her way to the chimaera and reached out to thread her fingers through its hair. Her back was to them but he could see the way it shook.

“I’m glad I made it in time for evaluation, I really saved my neck. I don’t have to worry about my research funding again for the time being.” Tucker breathed a sigh of relief, a hand coming up to scratch the back of his neck.

Cliona couldn’t see past the tears as she mouthed the same words over and over again to the chimaera. Why didn’t she know? Why couldn’t she stop this from happening? Why did she give up her memories? Her arms were around the creature’s neck, bringing it in for a hug when she realised Edward had come to check on what was happening. Nina was gone, lost inside this new creation that would be in pain until its death.   
“Ed…ward.”

“Hey, are you okay?” He whispered to her, eyes darting over the way she was clinging to the chimaera, fingers curled in on one hand to protect a yellow ribbon. It was familiar.

“Ed..ward….Big….Bro…ther.”

The sickening truth sunk into Edward’s mind then, realising why Cliona had thrown herself at the chimaera. His face was ashen, mouth dry as what could only be described as anger and dread bubbled up from his stomach. It couldn’t be true.

“Mr. Tucker? When was your research on talking chimaeras approved of and when did you get your license?” Ed asked, bangs obscuring molten gold that churned.

“About two years ago.”

“When did your wife leave?”

There was a pause, “Also two years ago.”

“One more question, okay?” He clenched his fist, “Where did Alexander and Nina go?”

“I hate brats with good instincts like you.”

There was a flash second where the silence in the room was stifling, broken only when Ed had grabbed Tucker by his collar and slammed him against the wall.

“So _that’s_ how it was!”

“Brother!”

“You son of a bitch! How dare you! You used your wife two years ago, and this time you used your own daughter and dog to transmute a chimaera!”

Cliona pulled back from it as Alphonse’s armour jostled from the sudden reveal, a small gasp escaping from the core of the metal.

“You can only do _so much_ with animals, right?” Ed yelled, pressing his face closer to Tucker who shied away, “So it only makes sense to start using humans!” Venom dripped from every word that spilt from his mouth, poisoning the atmosphere further as any doubts were ripped from onlookers.

“Why are you so mad?” The man choked out, “Haven’t the advances in mankind has made come from experimentations on humans? Surely as a scientist you can understand.”

“No **_fucking_** way! Do you think that you’re going to be forgiven for doing something like this? For….for _toying_ with human _lives?”_

“Human lives?” Tucker laughed, “Yeah, human lives! You two are the poster boys for toying with human lives!”

The sound of metal crushing into human flesh echoed throughout the room, silencing the argument for a short pause. Their voices faded into the background as Cliona continued to sit by the chimaera, stroking it soothingly as whines left its mouth. It had human teeth.

“Brother!” Alphonse shouted, grabbing Ed’s arm that was pulled back to strike once more, “If you hit him any more than that, he’ll die.” The sound of a body dropping to the floor made her look up. Tucker was covered in his own blood, leaking from his hair line and from the corner of his mouth. A metal hand reached down for Cliona’s forearm, tearing her from the chimaera with little effort. The trio were at the study door then, back to the crumpled man.

“It’s not possible to get things done without dirtying your hands.”

“Mr. Tucker,” Al glared over his shoulder, “If you don’t shut up, I’ll _make_ you.”

* * *

 

Rain danced from the heavens, heavy and unforgiving as it washed over Cliona. Her eyes hadn’t left her feet since they left the Tucker Estate. She was currently outside Central Command Headquarters on the steps that led to the entrance. Ed and Al were sitting further up from her, quiet with their knees drawn up to their chests. She hadn’t meant to offend them earlier when she had purposely gone to sit away from them, but that doesn’t mean she didn’t.

Edward could make out her form from where he was, body no longer shaking but rather still in the silent defeat she seemed to have accepted. He wondered if she wanted nothing to do with them now. This was something he knew would only mark their walk into the darkness that was being a State Alchemist. She was perceptive enough to see Tucker for what he was, something Ed hadn’t taken her seriously about.

“How long do you plan to sulk like that?” Mustang’s voice broke his concentration.

“Shut up.”

Cliona turned to the side so she could see the Colonel as he made his way down the few steps slowly, making sure he had enough time to speak with the blond alchemist that refused to look beyond his knees.

“Even if you are called dogs of the military or a devil, the one who decided to make full use of those privileges to restore their bodies was you. Do you really have the time to take a break for something minor like this?”

Ed was silent for a moment, his head lifting as a thrum of anger went through him, “As ‘minor,’ huh. Yeah, I’ll restore our bodies, even if we’re called dogs or devils, but we’re still neither that nor god,” His voice shook as he got to his feet, hands clenched into fists at his side as desperation marred his face, “We’re just human beings! And we couldn’t even save a little girl!”

Cliona pushed herself up from where she was sitting and made her way up the remaining steps so she was face-to-face with the boy, unsure if it was the rain or tears that were now running down his cheeks.

“Insignificant human beings.” He said brokenly, gaze dropping back to his shoes as he felt arms wrap around him for an embrace. Cliona grabbed onto the back of his shirt, her hands having gone under the cloak that was a symbol of safety for her. She felt his head drop onto her shoulder but didn’t feel him return the hug.


End file.
